The Echani Chronicles
by Marianne Bennet
Summary: Stories about Brianna the Handmaiden, her sisters, and the male Exile. Begins with "Identity" then "Wonderland", "Common Ground", "Imprint", "Ashes", "Stranger", "Betrayal", "Tempest", "Revelation," "Heavy," "Catalyst," and "Doorway." COMPLETE
1. Identity

Identity

By Elle Kitty

_Let us go then, you and I,_

_When the evening is spread out against the sky_

_Like a patient etherized upon a table;_

_Let us go, through half deserted streets,_

_The muttering retreats_

_Of restless nights in one-night cheap hotels_

_And sawdust restaurants with oyster shells;_

_Streets that follow like a tedious argument_

_Of insidious intent_

_To lead you to an overwhelming question…_

_Oh, do not ask, "What is it?"_

_Let us go and make our visit_

_The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufock_

_T.S. Elliot_

Atris had told the youngest Echani Handmaiden many things about the Jedi Exile, some most disreputable but, as Brianna investigated the rooms of the _Ebon Hawk_, all she could deduce was that he was a human being like any other. There were not many items of personal value in the vessel; perhaps the TSL had removed all of his property or he simply was not the sort of man to allow anything that could tell anyone about him to lie about for someone to pick up. What Brianna did find did not prove to be incriminating, as she was supposed to be looking for evidence that could point to the Jedi Exile as the source of the recent destruction of the Peragus Mining Facility, but she did uncover other interesting facts. What she did find, which included a pair of Pazaak cards that had fallen below the pilot's seat, a disabled HK unit in a side cargo compartment, a shoe left under a bunk in the starboard dormitory, and a pair of dirty socks in the refresher, did indicate that the majority of the current occupants of the _Ebon Hawk _were not female.

Brianna could not help but wonder what sort of man he was, as she stepped lightly into the main hold. Would he be clever enough to find his way to this academy on the ice cap to recover his ship and T3 unit? If so, would he be angry with the Echani Handmaidens and their mistress for having "stolen" his ship from its hanger on Citadel Station? If he was what Atris had claimed him to be, what would he say when he met the Jedi Historian once more, this time as a returned Exile? Would he notice Brianna? Would he take her somewhere, somewhere far away, far, far away from her sisters' cruelty and malice? Or would he walk past her, fixed on whatever mission he had appointed himself to follow?

She brushed her small hand through her short silvery hair with a sigh and resigned herself to the fact that she could never follow the Exile; that she would never allow herself to trust someone whom Atris so despised, no matter how much she wanted, no, _needed_ to get away. But, even as she was able to steal a private moment for herself in which she could think, one of the five reasons for Brianna's need to "get away" stepped into the Main Hold.

Adele was older than Brianna, taller, slimmer, and willowy. She wore her beauty like a cool pale mask, like a thin sheet of frost that covered her features and only under that was the real woman. _Identical beauty, _Brianna reminded herself. _And what good is beauty when all around you possess your same features? _Except Brianna. The youngest Handmaiden possessed a different face from the rest of her sisters, a different beauty. Her features were bolder, rougher, and where Adele's eyes were silver, Brianna's were blue-gray. Brianna's beauty was more striking than that of her sisters, if only in its uniqueness. But, such unique beauty soon had proved to be an affliction rather than a gift.

"Sister," said Adele, "just because you recovered the ship does not mean that you must spend all of your time aboard. Your time would be better spent perfecting your fighting stance. Sometimes I do not understand you. You have some potential and, were I you, I would develop what little potential I possessed, even if it were to amount to nothing."

Brianna forced herself to smile at her half-sister. _Half-sister. _There was the root to the older sisters' hatred of the youngest Handmaiden. That hatred had grown like a weed, sprawling until it bubbled over until it was not only Adele and Clytemnestra who found offense with Brianna, but also Serena, Lyra, and Alianne.

"I do not know, sister," replied Brianna through clenched teeth, "but perhaps it is something about this ship that calls me to come here. It is easy enough for me to practice my pattern dances in the ship's cargo hold. I would hate to get into your way in the training room."

"Or perhaps you are drawn to this place because it is a reminder of one of your few accomplishments," said Adele musingly, a sweet snake. "Truly, we are indebted to you for your recovery of this vessel. We are also grateful for your devotion to search the ship from top to bottom but I tell you that there is nothing here. There is no longer any purpose for you to spend your time here. Besides, Atris has no use for this ship herself; it is only part of a test."

"A test?"

"To wait and see if the Exile finds his way here in pursuit of his "stolen" vessel. Until he arrives, there is little reason for you to be here. Come. Let us go."

"Let us go" Adele had said but Brianna was uncertain that she wanted to follow her elder sister. "Let us go" the Echani had said, the perfect Echani who embodied the epitome of serene combat, but Brianna did not want to be that. If she followed, would she soon find herself in Adele's position, silently unhappy with the duty of a nun charged with organizing unruly schoolgirls? If someone else said "Let us go" to Brianna, would the youngest Echani be more willing to listen? But Brianna only stepped forward and followed her sister out of the _Ebon Hawk_. As far as Brianna could tell, there was only one way out of the ship and only one way to find her place in the galaxy and that was to follow Adele and the others until she could finally break away. But, as to how she was going to break free, that was a mystery.

…

But if there was one person that Brianna did wish to follow, that would be Atris, the Jedi Master and Historian that had been the one-time master of the Exile. Atris had taken all six Handmaidens under her steady hand, matronly in a way, and had trained them to be resistant to anything that might taint the sisters. She had taken all six under her wing regardless of parentage and for that Brianna was grateful. There could so many who might set the youngest Echani aside from her sisters, consider her to be "impure" because of her father's actions, but Atris had done no such thing and for that Brianna was indebted to her.

It was her that Adele and Brianna left the ship in order to meet with but, before they stepped into her council chamber, there was a sound like a scream across the sky and the two sisters stopped and turned. There was a sound like a crash, as though something hard and metallic had slammed into their very ceiling, and then Adele nodded to her younger sister and said, "Take Alianne and see what has happened up there."

Brianna nodded, presenting a show of obedience to her sister, and then went down into the training room before activating the door that led into the small room she shared with Alianne, the sister closest to Brianna's age. The young woman was lying on her cot, staring up at the ceiling, silver eyes wide open. Brianna stepped towards her own cot and then opened the footlocker below her bed, retrieving a set of white furs that she then wrapped about her torso and head. Alianne rose from her bed and asked, "What has happened?"

"Adele wants us to go up onto the plateau and see what is up there," answered Brianna as she clipped her quarterstaff onto her belt, allowing her hands to rest for a moment on the weapon that her father had once held in his hands. She shut the footlocker and then opened it again when she saw that a corner of a silvery gray robe had become caught in the hinge. She tried to remove the fabric without damaging the material as Alianne watched curiously. "It sounds like there was some kind of crash landing."

"But who would know where to find us her?" questioned Alianne with a slight tremor in her voice. "Who would know where to look? It couldn't be…"

Knowing that Alianne was about to say, Brianna shook her head. "It couldn't be him. Not even he could track his ship down in so little time."

"But what if he has come here? What if he has come here and he is seeking retribution? What if he is here to destroy us all in revenge? What if what Atris has told us about him is true and he has fallen to the Dark Side and he is here to enslave us? What if-"

"Or what if he is only confused and wondering where his ship has gone and somehow picked up on this small structure?" interrupted Brianna, closing her footlocker again. "What if he only wants to talk to Atris and is not seeking retribution? I saw nothing on his ship that would indicate any fall to the Dark Side."

"But there was nothing to see!" exclaimed Alianne. "Anyone who hides any trace of his presence surely has something to hide."

"Alianne," she stood up and took her sister by the shoulders. "I do not think that he is here to kill us; I do not think that he is here at all. Whatever Adele and I heard was probably only a scouting droid or something of that kind, sent here to evaluate the area and shot down by one of our turrets. Surely it is nothing but we have to look. I need you to keep your head and come with me, alright?"

Alianne nodded and, after retrieving her own white furs, followed Brianna out towards the exit onto the plateau. Lyra stopped them before they could exit. "Our cameras have recorded some kind of space shuttle landing on the plateau," she told them, "outdated model, little threat. What it brought here, however, could be a threat. Are you certain that you do not want someone more experienced to accompany you, Alianne?"

"I am certain that we are more than capable of handling this mission on our own, Lyra," said Brianna coolly. "Thank you for your concern."

She nodded at Alianne and then they entered the elevator and stepped onto the icy plateau, the shrill biting wind gnawing at their faces. Even bundled in warm white furs, they shivered. Alianne's teeth chattered as they moved towards the wreck, the black scar against the white of the snow, and stood beside the shuttle. Brianna knelt and took off her glove, cringing at the wind brushing up against her skin. Nevertheless, she placed her numb fingers against the battered hull. "Still warm," she murmured. She circled the crashed ship and then pointed out a large hole in the underside of the vessel. "It was shot down."

"One of our turrets?" Alianne asked.

"I am… unsure. Lyra did not mention anything and, well, she was the one who examined the feeds. I think it was something else. Unless-"

They both jumped at the sounds of blaster fire and ducked instinctively behind the wreckage. Atris had taught them to attack only as a defense. And, as they crouched in the snow, sure enough, the sounds stopped. Alianne made a move to look around at the other side of the ship, but slipped and landed with thud on the ice.

And it was well enough that they had paused as three figures made way to the entrance to the new Telos Jedi Academy. Brianna made way as in pursuit, but as confrontation was not necessary, their sisters would take care of that, Alianne held her back. "Wait," the elder instructed and then knelt in the snow.

Beside the Echani sister was a crumpled figure. Brianna helped him up. "Shh, you're safe now," she said patiently. He was a Zabrak, mechanic from the looks.

He looked up at them. "Bao Dur," he said, gesturing to himself. "You are?"

The Echani handmaidens shook their heads. "Such things should not be necessary," murmured Alianne, the perfect picture of the neutrality and indifference they had been taught to use in public.

Brianna was taken by surprised, but only slightly. This had been drilled into their heads since birth and it should have seemed only natural. But Brianna missed the wicked twinkle in her sister's eyes, the essence of mischief. But now was not the time for such things.

"We will try to forget your name, as we were not to have known," Alianne went along dutifully and her words had a sort of memorized quality clinging to each syllable. She wanted, needed to forget. But Brianna wasn't about to do the same.

Bao Dur nodded once, before asking for water. Brianna uncorked her flask to find it had frozen solid. "Never mind," she sighed, screwing the stopper back on. "We can get you some later."

And, once again the dutiful Echani sisters, they took him back inside. He passed out again soon enough and Brianna felt ashamed from not finding him water immediately. Was containing a potential enemy of greater importance than granting him a simple and necessary request? But Brianna did not have time to ponder such moral quandaries, or so she told herself, and she regretfully flicked the switch of the cell that Alianne had placed him in, confining the harmless prisoner.

When she returned to the antechamber, she found that her five other siblings, including Alianne who shot a worried glance toward Brianna, had surrounded a trio of humans, presumably the three figures she had seen on the plateau. If these were the same people who had inhabited the _Ebon Hawk_, she had been correct: there was only one woman in the party. How strange that even now, Brianna could find amusement in such a thing!

Her second eldest sister, Clytemnestra, threw her a triumphant look that only hinted at the glee she must had felt at being the one to apprehend the intruders, a look only Brianna could have deciphered. How she hated Clytemnestra! She hated the elder sister's proud walk, proud stance, and proud attitude. Atris had long since cautioned Clytemnestra that pride would go before a fall and Nessa, as only Adele was allowed to call her, had bowed her proud head and said responded meekly that she would try to do better in the future. Atris had been satisfied but misled, as the moment Clytemnestra had exited her mistress's presence, she had tossed her head back and laughed for sheer joy that she had deceived the kind Jedi Master.

But Clytemnestra had obviously hoped for a battle between the intruders and the sisters and had not yet relieved the newcomers of their weapons. Determined to take the lead once more, Brianna stepped into the ring. "Throw down your weapons," she said in a voice as clear as crystal, "and you will not be harmed. I would not do that if I were you," she told the man with messy brown hair as he reached for his blaster. "I will not touch you but I cannot say the same for my sisters."

The dark haired man smiled charmingly, almost leeringly, and said, "Surrounded by lovely woman, am I? I was just reaching for my Pazaak cards. You can tell your lovely sisters that they are welcome to do just about anything to me, provided that they-"

"Atton," the man in the center said warningly. "I agree with her. Your hand is getting too close to that blaster." The leader shook his dark red hair out of his eyes, displaying prominently the gold streaks. He grinned boldly at Brianna, a challenge, a hope, a wish. A look that might have been returned under other circumstances. Brianna could feel the blush coming to her face but his smile turned serious as soon as Brianna's mistress entered the vicinity. "Atris," he said without preamble, "I ought have known."

Brianna stared but kept her face a mask. Could this be him? Zeke Karis? The Exile? She pulled her hood over her head so that she could study him without his noticing. She took him in as Atris took him in. He seemed a kind man, if one cared to notice such things, which Brianna did. He was a handsome man, if one cared to notice such things, which Brianna told herself that she did not. He had brown eyes and hair that was of the shade of the redwood trees in Telos's new forests. Something about his stature was pleasing to the eye; Brianna had to stop herself before the sight of him brought a smile to her lips. And…there was something about him. Something that would, under any other circumstances, draw Brianna closer to him. She wanted to follow him, wherever he went, and for some reason she did not find that surprising. He was the sort of man that could make anyone want to follow him.

But now he followed Atris out onto the platforms that bridged the chasm that divided Atris's . Atris had put on a stony expression. Brianna watched them leave, regretful that she could not be privy to their conversation.

Serena, Brianna's fourth sister, raised her eyebrows and glanced at the two humans that had followed the Exile into the academy. The man whom the Exile had called "Atton" was now raising his hands above his head with a comical expression on his face, obviously thinking he was amusing and could charm his way into the sisters' affections, while the old woman, whom Brianna found she suddenly had a deep respect for, watched Atton's bravado with complete and utter disdain. Brianna beckoned to Lyra and Alianne and the three of them ushered the two companions to the holding cells where they could join Bao-Dur.

The old woman entered her cell willingly with the slightest of grimaces as she observed her accommodations but the male put up a bit of a fight. As Lyra attempted to usher Atton into his holding cell with calm words explaining that this would be temporary until Atris could determine the Exile's intentions, Brianna exchanged a confused glance with Alianne when his posture shifted into the stance of an Echani.

"You can't be serious," Atton said. "You're telling me that I should be reassured to find out that my fate is dependent on whether or not your ice queen thinks Karis is _sane_? That's a battle already lost."

"Into the cell, fool," the old woman snapped. "Cooperate and you will survive."

Cooperate he did but it seemed that he could not resist exclaiming, "Why is it that everywhere we go I end up in a cell?"

Brianna let out an exasperated sigh and left to attend to Atris. She found her mistress standing alone in the council chamber. "You let him go then," the handmaiden said with wonder. "You let him go."

"I did," the white haired historian replied. "I let him go but I have his promise that he will attend to some… matters that concern him. The last Jedi. He is to seek them out and arrange a meeting with them and with me. I want you to go with him." That last sentence was said quickly and with finality. Brianna knew there was no room to argue. The Jedi continued. "I want you to accompany him on his mission and make sure that he does what he has agreed to do. I expect you to provide me with updates and record his behaviors. Mark those who influence him and should you run into any trace of the Sith, inform me immediately."

"Of course, mistress."

"There is another thing." Brianna paused when Atris said this. "I want you to… gain his trust. Befriend him. Discover what makes him… tick. Find the dark taint that I know must be deep within him and, when you do, contact me. I know that you will not fail me, Brianna."

"I need to know something, mistress. Something that might aid in my perception of his current behavior," she said and then hesitated. "What… what was he like? What was he like before the Mandalorian Wars claimed him as you say they did?"

Atris sighed and looked down into the abyss. "We all have our heroes. And we die as we watch them fall."

…

It had been simple enough to slip onto the _Ebon Hawk. _It was less simple to find an appropriate venue to announce her presence to the rest of the inhabitants of the ship without provoking an angry reaction. Brianna decided to make her next move when they were far from Telos and the Exile and his companions had gathered in the main hold, the main hold that Brianna had studied only a few days before. She hesitated for a moment, crouched in the corridor, and waited for the proper time to reveal herself. Finally, unable to remain hidden any longer, she stepped out into the light and said, "It would be a mistake to go to Nar Shaddaa unless you are certain that the Jedi Master has situated himself there."

There was a moment of stunned silence as each companion took Brianna in. She looked at each of them, silently willing them to accept her among them, and only then did she look to Zeke. "I would prefer that we went to Dantooine."

Zeke watched her but he did not see angered by her arrival. He reached out into the projected galaxy map and drew a line with his finger between Telos and Dantooine. "There have been reports of ion storms along that hyperspace route," he told her. "Onderon is in a difficult political… mess and… and I am not yet ready to go to Korriban."

It was then that Atton spoke up. "Are you here to steal the ship again?"

"I never said that I stole the ship."

"I don't need to take your word for it. You're obviously Atris's favorite little minion; otherwise, why would she have sent you here? You probably did steal the ship." And then he muttered, "And here I was blaming the trash compactor."

Brianna then chose to address the rest of her remarks to Zeke. "I am here to aid you in your mission," she told him. "I would accompany you, if you were to accept me."

"I would decline," said the old woman who had called Atton a fool. "It is not wise to keep a servant of Atris so close. But the decision is yours, Exile. But remember those who exiled you."

Bao-Dur smiled at the Echani. "Kreia is right that the decision is yours but, if she wants to come, I say let her," he said with a shrug. "If she is truly our friend, that is a benefit. And if she proves to be our enemy, well, 'keep your friends close but keep your enemies closer.'"

"I'd like you to come with us," said Zeke. Brianna smiled at his response. But Kreia scowled.

"I disapprove," said Kreia flatly. "If you wish to speak to me, Exile, I will be in my quarters."

"Yeah," agreed Atton. "So will I. I'll be in my quarters. But, since I don't have any, I guess I'll just be in my cockpit where I usually hang out. And she can stay in the cargo hold. Maybe that'll teach her a thing or two about locking people up."

Atton and Kreia exited as did Bao-Dur. Only the Handmaiden and the Exile were left standing in the main hold. "My name is Zeke Karis," he said, "I'm… well, I'm the Exile. I suppose that Atris has told you about me?"

Brianna glanced around, suddenly nervous. Here she was, alone with this man, and she did not know what to do! "Yes," she replied uncertainly. "I'd… I'd better go and see about that cargo hold."

"You don't have to stay there if you don't want to."

"It's fine," Brianna reassured him and then stepped away, pattering lightly down the hallway until she reached the cargo hold. She touched the bag she had deposited there earlier and sat down, leaning against the wall. She closed her eyes and then realized something.

His name was Zeke Karis. He had introduced himself, though he had no reason to as Brianna already knew who he was.

But Brianna had never told him her name.

…

_In the room the women come and go_

_Talking of Michangelo_

A/N: I feel so much better now that I've fixed this. Please review and leave your opinion about the rewrite. -EK


	2. Wonderland

Wonderland

By Elle Kitty

_The yellow fog that rubs its back upon the window-panes,_

_The yellow smoke that rubs its muzzle upon the window-panes_

_Licked its tongue into the corners of the evening,_

_Lingered upon the pools that stand in drains,_

_Let fall upon its back the soot that falls from chimneys,_

_Slipped by the terrace, made a sudden leap,_

_And seeing that it was a soft October night,_

_Curled once about the house and fell asleep._

_The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufock_

_T.S. Elliot_

The _Ebon Hawk _swooped down towards the Smuggler's Moon, cutting a wide arc through the skies of Nar Shaddaa. In the cockpit, Atton Rand flipped switches and tried his best to guide the ship down towards the Refugee Sector. "Hold on," he said, tongue between his teeth as they descended through the stratosphere. "This landing is going to be interesting."

"Define 'interesting,'" commanded the Handmaiden through gritted teeth from where she sat in the navigator's chair with her hands holding tight to her unnecessary crash webbing. It had only been a few days since the departure from Telos and Brianna had felt a continuous stream of animosity towards her radiating from most of the crew, particularly from Atton.

The pilot spared the Echani a glance of supreme disdain before replying with undisguised sarcasm, "Oh no, we're all going to die?"

Brianna sniffed audibly. "I did not have such difficulties while piloting this vessel."

"Oh, yeah. That's right. You're the one who stole the ship." He gently guided the ship down towards the landing pad which seemed awfully far away to Brianna. "Thanks for reminding me why I hate you."

"Rand," said Zeke in a voice that barely hinted at his true exhaustion. "She may have stolen the ship but she also led us to where we needed to go. I'm not sure that we would have found Atris without her help."

"And what a pity that would have been," mumbled Atton under his breath as the ship landed lightly. "Really, I could not have lived and died with happiness without meeting the snow queen."

"Atris is my mistress!" said Brianna as she unbuckled her crash webbing and rose from her seat. "I would have you speak of her with respect in your voice."

Atton swiveled around in his chair and looked up at Zeke furiously. "I'm telling you, Karis, she isn't on our side! Not that we have a side," he added hastily, "unless you count my front against Kreia. But you just heard what she called Atris! She'll kill us all in our sleep and then go running back to her mistress to get a gold star on her forehead."

"Really, Rand," said Brianna, already turning to go, "if I desired your demise, you would not be present to complain any further."

"Don't bet on that, sister. You try and kill me in my sleep; I will personally drag you back to Atris by your hair like the hellcat you are. That is," Atton glanced at Brianna's short silver locks, "if you had enough hair for me to grab."

Brianna spun around, blue eyes flashing in undisguised fury. As Atton got up out of his seat, casually peeling off his fingerless gloves as he did so, the handmaiden lunged towards him as if she were about to grab the pilot and throw him to the floor. But before she could, Zeke's arm snaked out and grabbed her by the waist. As she writhed, trying to free herself from the Exile's grip so she could presumably strangle Atton, he said, "Don't. He wants you off of the ship. Don't give him a legitimate reason."

"Sure, sure," grumbled Atton, crossing towards the doorway. "Take her side." But he stopped when he saw Kreia blocking his path.

The old woman took in the room at a glance, what could presumably be called her gaze lingering on Zeke's arm still wrapped around Brianna's waist. "There should be no sides taken here. We are all on this vessel with the same purpose: to destroy the darkness that haunts the corners of the galaxy. You, Exile," she said to Zeke, "you have never been known to take sides and instead you choose to walk the gray areas between light and dark. If you have now decided to choose a side to stand for, I would choose those who will stand beside you more… carefully. Now, there is a nasty Toydorian who demands our presence out on the landing pad and I feel that patience is not a cultivated virtue of his. Come."

Zeke's arm dropped from Brianna's waist and, as the Exile followed Kreia out of the cockpit, Atton turned to the handmaiden with an expression consisting of a mixture of disgust and unwilling pity and respect. "If you think that you can go around Nar Shaddaa the way you went around Telos, think again. You steal someone's ship here; they don't invite you along for the ride. And cheer up. He's the Jedi Exile; he's supposed to save the galaxy. He can't stand in a cockpit with his arm around you forever, you know."

"Do not," said Brianna coldly in return, "presume to instruct me in something I already know."

Atton shrugged as though he no longer wished to descend to brawl with the handmaiden. "Alright then," he said as he slung a rifle and an equipment pack over his shoulder. "But don't come crying to me if Nar Shaddaa isn't to your liking, sweetheart. You're not in Telos anymore. I have a feeling that you're about to get a nasty surprise."

.:Nar Shaddaa: Landing platform in Refugee Sector:.

"Ah," Atton sniffed theatrically. "Do you smell that? That, little Miss Handmaiden, is the beautiful stench of decay and desperate living. A great powerful stench. What do you think about that?"

Brianna tore her eyes away from where Zeke argued and debated with the Toydorian Kreia had mentioned. She was also aware of that same old woman observing all that they did from one of the windows of the dormitories. "I think," she replied with little deliberation, eager to take a good look around and less eager to combat with Atton's sardonic sense of humor, "that the stench is less than 'beautiful.'" She took a few tentative steps towards the side of the landing pad and peered over the edge at the sprawling urban metropolis below her. The blinding lights of the speeders, billboards, and windows were reflected in her blue eyes. Atris has shown her holograms and images of Corusant but that great capital of the Republic had always seemed prim, proper, and well maintained, or at least from Atris's view from the Jedi Temple. This place was like one great weed where Corusant had been a series of carefully pruned hedges. "There's a certain… majesty to this place. It… pulses with life. Even if the stench is not stunning, the view certainly is."

"Yeah, well, beautiful, stinky, it all sounds the same to me. Either way, whatever adjective you wish to describe it with, I know this place like the back of my hand. Tell your buddy Karis," Atton nodded towards the Exile, "that that buzzing wasp of a Toydorian is getting a little bit too curious about us and our ship and our docking credentials. Curiosity is good in small doses and, for us, I'm pretty sure that curiosity can prove to be lethal."

But Zeke was coming back and Brianna did not get the opportunity to speak to him privately as she would have liked to. "Careful there," he said to her as his brown eyes took in the way her torso leaned over the railing. "If you fall, you fall for miles." (Behind him, Atton grinned wickedly, crossing his fingers for luck and making sure that Briana could see them.) Zeke looked to the pilot. "I want to know why there is a bounty on Jedi," he told him matter-of-factly. "Who in the Exchange could tell me that information?"

He sounded so certain, so sure of himself, and Brianna envied him for that certainty. He may have been an exile but he knew his place in the galaxy. Perhaps not having strict expectations imposed by others makes knowing who one is less difficult.

Atton whistled in surprise and slight amusement before waiting for the Toydorian to take off before answering. "There is a bounty on Jedi set by the Exchange and you want to go _running to them? _Damn it. I knew I should have ditched all of this insanity back on Citadel Station. Or maybe I should have just stuck to my cell in the first place. Everything seemed a lot safer there."

"Crazy mining droids seemed _safe_?" Zeke said incredulously and then muttered, "You wanted to stay in your cell? That can have been arranged. I knew you fixed the lock on the cargo hold door for something. Next time, I'll lock you up and the handmaiden can fly the ship."

"Nevertheless," said Brianna, feeling as though she should supply the voice of diplomacy in this particular situation, "he does have a point. It was my understanding that we came to Nar Shaddaa to locate one of the remaining Jedi, not to engage in a massive hunt of a criminal organization like the Exchange in order to discover some hidden motives behind a bounty."

Zeke looked at his two companions with a exasperation carefully masked by Jedi-like patience as he attempted to explain his reasoning. He had thought it all out on the flight to Nar Shaddaa. "Now, we're looking for a Jedi here on Nar Shaddaa. While we can't be sure that he's still here, we need to take a really good look around, looking in the right places and asking the right people the right questions. If there is a bounty on Jedi, that master isn't going to be looking for my company if there is a bunch of hunters stalking me who would be just as happy to cash in a check for that master as well as for me. It seems to me that we need to deal with this business with hunters before we see to anything else."

Brianna nodded, apparently swayed to his side. But her lingering uncertainty revealed itself in her voice. "From what I understand, on Citadel Station you met with a representative of the Exchange. It was a… rather unconventional meeting but could he not have told you what you need to know?"

"From what I understand," said Atton mockingly, "that slimy Quarren Slusk didn't live long enough to tell us anything useful. Besides, if you really want to get answers you need to go straight to the source. It's like a computer; there's no point in dealing with tiny outlets like that slime ball on Telos when you can go straight to the main hub. And in this case, the main hub is most definitely Goto."

"Goto?" repeated Zeke, a small line creasing his brow in confusion. "Is that a name I'm supposed to know but don't?"

"He's the big kahuna of the Exchange," answered Atton, beginning to stroll down the platform, nodding at refugees and merchants as Brianna and Zeke quickened their pace to keep up. There was a swagger to his step that Brianna recognized; he was in his element here on the Smuggler's Moon. It was an attitude Brianna knew well for she had often seen it in the steps of her older sisters Adele and Clytemnestra. It was the walk of someone who knew they had a captive audience, of someone who knew that he could start walking and not have to glance back to know that his companions were following and listening. Atton knew that Zeke and Brianna would follow him because he held the information they needed about Goto and the Exchange but Brianna looked at him and saw proud Clytemnestra instead. Her blue eyes hardened but she said nothing and fell into step with Zeke.

Atton continued. "He dabbles in everything: spice, bounties, slaves, fuel, you name it. You don't want to get on his bad side but, if there's a bounty on you, you already did. So… you've got nothing to lose."

"We want to attract the notice of the Exchange?"

"Exactly," replied Zeke decisively. "That is exactly what we want." He turned to Atton. "Who on Nar Shaddaa has a bone to pick with Goto?"

"Goto's got a finger dipped in nearly everything that goes on around here but from what I heard before I got myself into that cell on Peragus, the Exchange has gotten a little too friendly with the freighters of a Hutt here on Nar Shaddaa named Vogga. I say we start there. All we need to do to talk to him about Goto is to get an audience."

"Easier said than done," said the Exile warily. "I'm guessing that he has some kind of residence here. How do we find that out?"

The pilot grinned. "All roads on Nar Shaddaa lead to the cantina and I daresay that we may find some answers there. In my business, I've found that significant amounts of Juma will go a long way to loosen certain tongues."

"And is your tongue one of those sorts?" Brianna could not resist asking.

"Could be. However, I'd love to see what kinds of secrets come out of your pretty mouth when you're under the influence. Confessions, much deserved apologies, maybe even a secret fantasy or two?"

"Atton," said Zeke warningly as the handmaiden began to reach for her quarterstaff again but the pilot merely shrugged.

"Hey, go ahead and play your part as peacekeeper, Karis. I'm not stopping you. But let her keep to her vestal livery and let me keep to my not so vestal livery. Don't try and change us or we might change you."

.:Lucky Card Cantina (and Secret Pazaak Den):.

There was the chink of glass onto a metal counter as Zeke slammed his mug back onto the bar top. Red and blue lights bounced around the room, flickering on the walls and on the faces of the cantina patrons and dancers. The beats of the song blaring through the speakers on the wall hurt Brianna's ears but Atton and Zeke seemed to drink the music in just like they drank down the liquor the bartender placed in front of them.

"For a preacher Jedi, you sure do drink a lot," Atton said, slurring his words as he did so. He then downed another glass. "Isn't that supposed to be against your Code or something?"

"Probably," laughed Zeke, "but that didn't stop me once the wars were over. Juma helps you forget, you know. I'd have probably drunk myself to death out there on the Rim if the _Harbinger _hadn't picked me up. Alcohol can be an escape, you know?"

Atton nodded sagely in agreement. "Women too. Women and alcohol. They're as good an escape as any. Were the ladies also your escape, Karis?"

But before Brianna could hear Zeke's answer (to which she was most interested), a large, burly man sauntered over towards the petite Echani. "You're too sober to be in this bar," he declared to all who cared to listen. "Buy you a drink, sweetheart."

"No, thank you," Brianna replied curtly before realizing that Zeke and Atton neither could nor cared to hear the conversation taking place not too far from them. She then dismissed the notion that she might be in above her head.

The man sat down on the bar stool next to her, saying, "Now you don't mean that," and attempting to pull the handmaiden into his lap.

"No, I think she means it," said a female voice from the corner. A slim redhead in a leather jacket stepped out into the light, green eyes filled with a mixture of annoyance and amusement. "Now, why don't you take your slimy hands off of the girl, Voren, or I might just have to call in that bounty on your ugly head? Haven't paid off a few debts, or so I hear.

He guffawed in response. "Everyone this side of the moon knows that you don't kill, little Mira."

"Now that isn't a name you should be throwing around. Besides, I might make an exception for a schutta like you. Go on. Get the hell out of here. Run off with your tail between your legs."

As he left, Brianna turned to Mira and said, "Thank you for your assistance but it would have proved to be unnecessary in a matter of moments."

The redhead rolled her eyes. "Don't mention it. Really, don't. I don't want anyone thinking I've gotten soft."

"You just threatened to kill someone," Zeke interjected, turning around in his seat. "That isn't exactly what I'd call 'soft.'"

Mira turned and allowed her eyes to roam over the tall Jedi as though memorizing every aspect of his appearance. Finally, she said, "I just don't like to see women get harassed by big, ugly males." She looked to Brianna again. "You come here alone?"

"I'm with her," said Zeke, getting up.

The bounty hunter looked back at Brianna as if the handmaiden suddenly was more important than before. "Alright. And I'm pretty sure than that this big oaf," she nodded towards Atton, "is with you too."

Atton slid off of his seat and began to look Mira over in the same way the redhead had appraised Zeke. "You wouldn't be too bad to… interfere with," he drawled. "You want to be my escape?"

"Not going to happen," answered Mira pointedly. She turned to Zeke, green eyes roaming over him again but this time more lazily, like the paws of a cat. "Your friend is trying to hit on me, which means that it's time to go. You all are obviously wet behind the ears when it comes to this whole Nar Shaddaa thing so allow me to give you a few pointers: don't go into any dark alleys, don't talk to anyone who doesn't talk to you first unless they are running a legitimate business, and don't mess with the Exchange. And… you probably shouldn't be talking to me." Her eyes flicked up to meet Zeke's. "See you."

His eyes followed her as she melted into the crowd without a backwards glance. "Shame," he said dryly, "because that's exactly what we are trying to do."

Brianna shivered. She wasn't sure if she liked the way Mira looked at Zeke.

Ten minutes passed and Atton decided to occupy himself with brainstorming ideas of how to get into Vogga's palace. The Juma was making him incredibly productive.

"I tell you that that redhead would've made a great… escape," Atton's lips curved into such a smirk that Brianna was sure that "escape" was not the word he was thinking of. "But that won't get us into Vogga's palace. Maybe we could… drug his pets! Yeah. And then Zeke could dress up like a doctor and he could do his whole Jedi healing thing and then we'd all get paid! Sounds like a plan to me!"

"You just want to get paid," argued Zeke, "and we want to help Vogga, not his pets. I don't even know if he has pets!"

Atton shrugged. "Whatever. Just let me know when you come up with some scheme. Knowing you, your plan will probably be legal." He got up and began to weave his way through the crowd until he was out of sight.

Brianna turned to Zeke. "Must we stay here much longer? The noise is… disrupting my senses." She leaned her palm onto her forehead. Though she would never admit it, she had a headache from all of the flickering lights and loud music.

"Are you alright?" Zeke asked. "Here-" Quickly, he took her shoulders and turned her about, placing his hands on her temples with the obvious intent to cure the handmaiden of her headache. For a moment, Brianna stared up at him blankly, ready to allow the Exile to use the Force on her, but then Atris's voice echoed in her mind:

"_The Exile is sly and manipulative. Years away from Republic space have made him cunning. The Mandalorian Wars gave him his edge. He is no longer the kind boy that I once described to you; sometimes, I wonder if he really ever was what I thought him to be. Do not accept any favors from him; do only what is required for you to accomplish your task. He is an easy trap of fall into."_

"_I shall not fail you, mistress."_

And there was her pledge, as binding as an oath. She should not let him touch her, even to heal this simple headache. She would rather die a painful death than disobey her mistress and her family.

"What did you just say?" Zeke sounded confused.

She realized that she had spoken the final words of her memory aloud. Face flaming in embarrassment and shame, she twisted away from the Exile and dove into the crowd, pushing past dancing bodies until she saw Atton in the center of the room intertwined with some blonde girl Brianna had never seen before. Atton seemed to be enjoying himself and the blonde's violet eyes glimmered in the dim light. With a strength that surprised her, Brianna pulled Atton toward the side of the room. The girl he had been dancing with evaporated into the crowd as though she had never been there to begin with. Atton regarded the handmaiden curiously as she said, "I want you to take me back to the ship. Now!"

He grinned. "You seem eager to get me back to the ship. A little lust stirring in the lovely handmaiden?" As Brianna began to vehemently object, he laughed and said, "Well, keep it under control. I have concocted another brilliant Atton Rand original plan and I need you."

"I am not asking that blonde dancer if she wants to do anything with you."

"She doesn't want to do anything with me, the tease." He looked affectionately back in the direction in which she had disappeared. "Anyways, I found our way to Vogga and it is a perfectly respectable, legal, and legitimate way to Vogga. How good of a dancer are you?"

"I've never danced in my life!"

"Would you dance if I wanted you to dance?"

Just as Brianna was about to start yelling at him again, Zeke reached their side. "What is going on? Atton?"

Atton pushed Brianna towards Zeke. "Here is our ticket into Vogga's palace. That guy over there," he jerked his head back in the general direction of a twi'leck standing in the corner, "is auditioning new dancers for Vogga. Since I happened to realize just how beautiful our handmaiden is, I offered her up as a candidate and he was very, very interested. So, go on, handmaiden. Show us what you can do."

Zeke raised his eyebrows. "And all of this happened before you got distracted by the blonde girl?"

"What can I say? She was a good distraction. But it's Brianna's turn to dance."

"You don't have to do this if you don't want to," Zeke said.

She looked up at him and then looked at Atton. "It shouldn't be too difficult," she replied. "It should be simple enough. Should I go and speak to him?"

"Just go and dance a little," Atton nodded towards the dance floor. "He's watching you. Don't act as though you have cold feet. Come with me. Let's dance."

"I am not dancing with you!" Brianna snapped. She didn't care if she sounded childish.

Atton didn't appear offended; only amused. He pushed Zeke forward and said, to the mortification of both the handmaiden and the Exile, "Dance with Karis here. You know you want to."

Brianna looked at Zeke. He shrugged. "It's up to you."

If she couldn't let him touch her forehead to relieve her of a migraine, what would a dance with him mean? He said it was up to her; those were the same words he had used when she asked if he wanted her to travel with him. Brianna flinched. Before coming to travel with the Exile, hardly any of the decisions affecting her had been left up to her discretion.

In response, Brianna reached over, took Zeke's hand, and led him out onto the dance floor. A new song was bouncing against the walls of the cantina as Brianna found her place, her gap, in the crowd. She was aware, painfully aware, of the people around her, the pulse of the cantina, and especially of Zeke's eyes on her. She hadn't liked the way he had looked at Mira; now she was quite sure that he was looking at her in the same way. She wasn't sure if she liked that either.

Then she let the music flow through her as though it traveled through her bloodstream. She allowed her body to move without her specific direction. It began as a simple sway and then turned into something more until she was nearly as graceful in this kind of dance as she was in her Echani pattern dances. She was now only dimly aware of the people around her, dimly aware of Zeke. There was just Brianna and the music.

Atton applauded mockingly as Brianna and Zeke returned and beside him was Vogga's agent. "You dance well," said the talent scout, "for a human, that is. Your friend, Mr. Rand, has informed me that you might be interested in a proposition of sorts."

"What kind of proposition?" asked Brianna.

"An opportunity to dance before a most esteemed member of the Smuggler's Moon," he answered. "I am auditioning new dancers to entertain my master. Master Vogga is very… temperamental but enjoys new company, particularly if the company is both beautiful and graceful. I have been looking for those qualities in one dancer all day to no avail. The beautiful ones are clumsy and the graceful ones are ugly. But I see that Fate has brought me a lovely specimen who embodies all of the feminine graces. Are you interested?"

"Very interested," Zeke cut in.

The agent regarded him curiously. "Are you her panderer?"

The Exile flushed. "No. I am her friend."

"Then I am not speaking to you. I am speaking to your friend. Are you interested in performing for the most illustrious Hutt this side of the moon? The job is quick, easy, and it pays well. All you have to do is put something on and dance a little when you arrive at the palace."

"'Put something on?'" Atton repeated, a smirk stretching across his face.

Brianna flinched. She had a very good idea of what she would be wearing to dance in. She turned to Zeke and said, "If you truly believe that it will further our purpose here, I will do this for you."

"I do not see why not. You might have to make it quick. My master often enjoys a nap after watching his dancers."

Zeke looked back to Brianna and nodded. Brianna squared her shoulders and said, "I accept."

Vogga's man smiled. "Excellent. I have a speeder waiting to take you to the palace. Unfortunately, Vogga is wary of unexpected company so it will be just the dancer and me. You can always come in after she is ready to dance and watch for yourself. I hope you gentlemen will understand."

"Handmaiden," Zeke began to object but Brianna had already been swept away.

.:Vogga's Palace:.

A hand thrust a small parcel wrapped in black silk through the opening in the black curtain of the changing room. "Put this on," said the slave dancer who had guided Brianna through the palace to the small chamber where the dancers prepared themselves to go onstage. "Hurry. You don't have much time before Ilia's routine is finished."

Brianna took the parcel and it seemed to her that there wasn't anything folded in the square of silky material. "Put what on?"

"Just unfold the cloth."

She did so and stared at the little red… outfit in her hand. _This… thing is not substantial enough to merit a name! _Brianna thought furiously. Then, with a resigned sigh because she knew her duty, she slipped on the gold and red costume, folded her Echani garb and tucked it away into a little footlocker at her feet, and stood back up when she heard the dancer ask, "Aren't you ready yet?"

"I'm ready," said Brianna although she didn't feel very ready. She stepped out of the curtained area and into the dim light of the main dancers' room. There were mirrors all of the wall but the light was so dim that Brianna couldn't even see her own reflection. For that, she was grateful.

The other dancers looked Brianna over with a critical air. "Undo the braids," ordered the one sitting on the floor and doing her make-up.

"Tighten the straps on the top," advised another dancer who had just arrived, still dressed in her street clothes. "You don't want to look like some cantina brat."

"Those shoes don't look as though they fit right," commented the one who had handed Brianna her costume. "Do you want a size smaller?"

"They're fine," Brianna reassured her.

She shrugged. "Whatever. It's not our skin if you trip. Now," her voice took on a more business-like tone, "now that you're ready, you go into that room and wait to be summoned. When you are called for, you go out into the antechamber and you dance. You do not look at anyone, you do not talk to anyone. You are here to dance and that is all."

The handmaiden nodded and went into the room that the dancer had directed her to. There was a sheer curtain dividing the small space from the rest of the antechamber where Vogga and his guests were relaxing. She could hear laughter and music and one loud roar from what she could only guess to be the Hutt. There was the sound of barking and yelping too from what sounded like kath hounds. Unable to resist, Brianna flicked aside one edge of the curtain and peered through the crack.

What she saw overwhelmed her. There were lights pulsing and dancers performing complicated routines and the crowd was cheering and jeering. There was the Hutt laughing rancorously, spittle flying off of the edge of his lower lip. There were kath hounds baying at the dancers while lying at their master's feet. There was… _life_ pulsing through that room but it was a much different kind of life than the life of battle or the pure life lived by Atris. It was the kind of life that she saw in Mira, the kind of life that frightened her and put her at unease when she saw it in Atton. It was the life she saw sometimes flickering behind Zeke's brown eyes when he spoke of Juma or of women on the Outer Rim or even of the Force. It was that… amount of life that frightened Brianna. It was a dangerous kind of life that could swallow you up and Brianna was about to step into it.

"It's too much," she whispered, letting the curtain fall. She could no longer see what was out there but it still beat out a constant pattern on her heart. "It's too much."

And then the curtain was brushed aside again but no one visible had opened it. It fell shut and then Zeke materialized beside her. "What's wrong?" he asked as he clicked off the stealth field generator around his waist. "Are you alright?"

"It's too much," she told him bluntly because it suddenly felt as though she did not have enough energy to put up a brave face. "What am I doing here? I'm not supposed to be here."

"You have just as much of a right to be here as Atton or anyone else does."

"I mean, _here_," she waved a hand to indicate the glittering world on the other side of the curtain. "It's too much for me to handle. I don't belong here. I'm not supposed to wear this; I'm not supposed to go out and dance for a Hutt. I am an Echani."

"And I am an Exile," he told her. "I don't want to do some of the things I do. I didn't want to be Atris's errand boy but I have to do things. I have to find people I'd rather not have to see ever again for what they did to me. I play my part. And you have a part to play too. Besides, is this so different from the sparring matches we have?"

"It's all of the difference in the galaxy!" Brianna exclaimed. "There is all of the difference between dancing for some slimy Hutt and sparring with someone I care about!"

A moment of stunned silence passed. "Oh," Zeke finally said. "I didn't realize that it was _that _kind of sparring we were talking about."

Brianna flushed. "Well, yes. It is an Echani custom to spar with a certain person multiple times. It allows us to discover more and more about our… opponent."

"Well," said Zeke thoughtfully, "then I suppose it isn't the same. I don't think that you really want to know anything more about Vogga. I told you before that you don't have to do this if you don't want to and that statement still stands. We can find another way."

"And I told you that if you wanted me to do this, I would. And that statement is still true. But it's difficult for me to do this. I feel so… exposed."

Zeke took a moment to look her over. "Exposed, you are. Just don't let it bug you. Just think of the look on Atton's face when he finds out that you did this. All of the way back to the ship, he was taking bets that you would chicken out."

Her eyes flashed. "Then he better have the credits to pay up."

There was a scuffling on the other side of the curtain and Zeke quickly flipped on the generator. The curtain opened and Brianna stepped out into the light. She saw the lights, the crowd, the hounds, and especially the Hutt but it all melted away.

The world melted away and Brianna danced.


	3. Common Ground

Common Ground

By Elle Kitty

_There will be time, there will be time_

_To prepare a face to meet the faces that you will meet;_

_There will be time to murder and create,_

_And time for all the works and days of hands_

_That lift and drop a question upon your plate;_

_Time for you and time for me,_

_A time yet for a hundred indecisions,_

_And for a hundred visions and revisions,_

_Before the taking of a toast and tea._

_The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufock_

_T.S. Elliot_

Breathing heavily, the Handmaiden dropped the empty metal canteen back onto the floor of the cargo hold and got to her feet, ready to begin her next pattern dance. She took a step forward, preformed an upwards block and then swung her left hand back and her right hand down into a second lower block. "One, two," she counted each punch she took under her breath and then slid down into a crouch, pushed her hands forward as though pushing away an imaginary opponent, stepping forward again as she flicked her wrists backwards. "Three, four."

She drew her left hand back and then drove it forward with and open palm, her thumb tucked in the way her father had taught her. "I don't care if the punches on your left hand hurt more than the ones on your right," she remembered him saying once. "Do them anyways."

"Five, six," she murmured as she punched her hands forward and back. "Seven," she kicked forward. "Eight."

Brianna closed her grey-blue eyes with the conclusion of the pattern dance and took a deep breath. She was restless; Nar Shaddaa made her restless. She had made her peace with her discomfort on the planet's surface weeks ago but her fear of the vibrancy of life had only been replaced by a fear for Zeke and for what could happen to him as a result of his doings on the Smuggler's Moon. He was not safe; even Brianna knew that much, but he claimed that there was no safety for an exile. Certainly there was no safety for a Jedi and none for a Jedi with no home, no family, no support, no purpose, and no future.

_No, _Brianna told herself. _That's wrong. He has me. He has Bao Dur, he has T3-M4, he has Kreia. He even has Atton, if he wants him. And he has me. That's enough for anyone._

But something told her that it was not. They were not united; no matter what Kreia said, they had no joint purpose. They were fugitives. An Exile, a witch, a lonely mechanic, a scoundrel, a droid, a spy. They had nothing in common; they had something in common. And Brianna knew what title belonged to her in that list.

Her eyes still shut tight, Brianna stepped forward, her movements as quick and deadly as lightning, and flung her right foot out in a sharp kick and then thrust her left hand to the side. Someone caught that hand and turned it sideways, forcing the Handmaiden to let her leg drop back to the floor. She opened her eyes and saw that Atton had her wrist in his grasp. "Good morning Sunshine," he said with a cheerful attitude that should condemn the pilot to Hell. "I was sure that you would have still been asleep but I was wrong."

Brianna's eyes analyzed Atton's stance before she yanked her wrist out of his grip. "That stance belongs to the Echani," she told him without any preamble. "You are not an Echani."

"Nope," he answered in that same merry voice. "Last time I checked, I don't wear white and I do have something between my legs, as unbelievable as that sounds. Zeke sent me. It's something important concerning a few friends of ours here on Nar Shaddaa."

"We have no friends on Nar Shaddaa. It must be the Exchange." She paused. "The Exchange is not our friend."

Atton rolled his eyes. "What? You didn't pick that up between the rounds of blaster bolts shot in our direction? I also wanted to inquire about your cooking abilities."

"My cooking abilities? Why do you assume that I have any?"

"You're a girl, aren't you? I asked Kreia but… yeah. She threatened to make me into a girl and see then if I possessed an 'aptitude in the culinary arts.'"

Brianna squared her shoulders and responded fiercely, "I do not know how to cook. It is not the sort of thing that one picks up when one spends one's childhood on the battlegrounds on the galaxy without one's mother."

"Sure, sure. But I had presumed that maybe Atris or one of your sisters might have…"

"You presume too much." Brianna's voice was deathly cold, so cold that Atton could have mistaken it for Kreia's dulcet tones. "The Exchange is the pressing matter here, is it not?"

"Sure, sure," said Atton a second time. "Zeke's outside. There was a message on the comlink that he wanted us all to hear."

.:Outside the _Ebon Hawk_:.

The chilly wind whipped around the six figures on the landing pad. Zeke was sitting with his back leaning against one of the leading gear supports, fiddling with the switches on his comlink. "I'm trying to trace the frequency," he said aloud as Atton and Brianna approached. "It isn't coming from a ship, that's for certain."

"Let me have a whack at it, General," said Bao Dur, reaching forward for the device.

Zeke seemed unwilling to hand it over and Kreia spoke up, saving him from having to do so. "May we at least hear the message we came out here to listen to before we begin deconstructing the device? I would have thought that you, Exile, had made your peace with not knowing all of the secrets of the galaxy."

The Exile flushed and, with a sheepish look, he flipped on the comlink. A droid identified the call to be Visquis and the Quarren's voice quickly filled the air, accompanied by the voice of the droid translating his words into Basic:

"_I have noticed your presence among the travelers coming to and from the Smuggler's Moon. You certainly have left your mark on the Refugee Sector. The Exchange has an interest in those that are… personable enough to gain our notice. I would like to present you with an offer of employment. Such offers cannot be properly extended through a comlink of course and I should like to meet with you, face to face, to discuss matters. I have a private lounge in a certain bar; you might know it as the Jek Jek Tar. I am sure that you in your curiosity have approached its doors at least once during your stay here and have been duly turned away. I assure you that, with one such as I awaiting your company, that mistake will not be made again. Come and find me. We have much to… discuss."_

Zeke lifted his thumb off of the comlink and let everyone take the content of the message in before speaking. However, as soon as he opened his mouth to say whether or not he would go, Atton interrupted, saying, "Well, good thing that it isn't a trap."

Brianna stared at the pilot in disbelief before exclaiming, "How can you say that? The Exchange isn't really interested in employing Zeke. It has to be a trap!"

He rolled his eyes before commenting, "Of course it's a trap! I just wanted to add a little humor to this dire situation."

"Real funny, Atton," muttered Bao Dur under his breath.

Kreia ignored Brianna, Atton, and Bao Dur's words which she clearly regarded as unnecessary antics. "What matters is whether or not we are going to spring the trap."

"_We _are not going to spring the trap," objected Atton. "If you think that I'm going right into the Jek Jek Tar, which is the jaws of Hell for any human that breathes oxygen, you are high on spice, old woman."

"Surely you must realize that anything Zeke Karis does will affect you, Atton Rand. If he goes, what will happen to you? If he is captured by the Exchange, do you think that Visquis will hesitate for a moment before capturing us and selling us all into slavery? If he dies-"

"Must we discuss him dying?" said Brianna before she could stop herself. "I don't want to think of him dying right now!"

"Must we discuss my person as though I am not here?" snapped Zeke, brown eyes flashing. "Because, if you haven't noticed, I _am_ here and I will make the decision whether or not I go and that will whether or not I am captured and whether or not I die, not your speculations. And," he looked to Brianna with a gentler look than before, "we have to discuss the possibility of my death because, whether any of you or I like it or not, it is a legitimate possibility. It's always a legitimate possibility, for all of us."

Atton snorted. "Well I for one know exactly what I will be doing the moment I catch wind that you are in inescapable trouble: flying away. Far away. Far away from morons who want to go running into the jaws of Hell."

Kreia shot him a look and said softly so that only Brianna who stood close beside her could hear, "You, Atton Rand, will be doing no such thing and you know it." Her mouth formed another word but she said nothing.

He flinched as if she had labeled him a murderer and said hastily, "Hypothetically of course. Hypothetically because I've grown so attached to all of you. Really, I have." Atton then looked to Zeke. "So, are you going to spring the trap? Because, if so, I think I'll have to take a rain check on that vacation I was planning for next week."

Zeke looked up from where he sat on the landing pad, very aware of all of the eyes on him waiting for a response. Then, very slowly, heavily as if he were a judge condemning someone to death with that nod, he nodded.

Everyone was silent for a moment until Kreia, whose pale withered lips curled into a small smile said, "Reckless."

"Reckless is right," Brianna huffed. "I cannot believe that you would do this, that you would put everyone at risk like this! And not just us but the Jedi Masters too!"

"What do you mean?" questioned Bao Dur.

"What I mean is that Zeke knows the locations of the last Jedi in the galaxy! He knows where Atris is, he knows where Loanna Vash is, knows where Master Vrook is. He knows where all of them are. We are not the only ones who want to find them; the Exchange does too. Can he keep himself from revealing their locations? Can he hold out under torture?"

"I've done it before; I can do it again!" answered Zeke with a sharpness to his tone. "I was captured in the Mandalorian Wars. I know what it's like. I did it for Revan; I can do it for all of you. If you still doubt me, I am sure that Kreia knows of some way to temporarily remove the information from my mind. Is that necessary for you, Handmaiden? Is that what you want?"

"To do so would run the risk of permanently damaging your mind," Kreia said softly. "I am no master at it and it would require a master at that technique and none are present."

"I would not be your executioner, Zeke," said Brianna just as softly, bowing her head. "I trust you. I just hope that that trust is not misplaced."

Another moment of silence passed. Perhaps seeking to alleviate the mood, Atton asked, "Well, tell me Karis, do you feel the pressure now?"

Zeke shook his head. "I don't feel pressure. I know that this won't work. I'm rather certain that I'll end up captured but I've been in worse situations, I'm sure."

"I don't want you to do this," Brianna persisted.

He turned to her with a familiar easy smile that had a bitter edge. "Oh, I know. But I know that there are some things that I have to do in my life and I'm pretty sure that this is one of them."

What followed was a grim sort of informal ceremony. Atton handed a few extra antidote kits to Zeke followed by his best lock picking tool. Bao Dur went up into the garage to fetch the environmental suit and handed the heavy package to the Exile who slung it onto his shoulders, grimacing slightly at the extra weight. T3 produced a few computer spikes and Kreia had already departed back into the _Ebon Hawk_.

At last, Zeke looked to Brianna with a crooked smile. "Well then," he said.

"I don't want you to go," she said sulkily.

He placed both of his hands onto her shoulders and took a hard look at her. "I know that you don't. But I have to. I told you that I had to be Atris's errand boy. Think of this as one of those errands. But, if anything happens to me, I want you to come and help me. You need to be the one to come and get me out of trouble." He let go of her shoulders and looked to Atton and Bao Dur. "Any bounty hunters come after you, throw in a few extra punches for me."

And then he was gone. He walked down the landing pad with a spring to his step. He could have been mistaken for a happy man going to call on his beloved, not an Exile going headfirst into a trap. Brianna watched his retreating back until he turned the corner and was gone and then she turned around and went back into the ship.

.:The Cargo Hold:.

Brianna knelt in a corner of the large room, half concealed by a few crates, and breathed deeply in and out, silently reciting a prayer taught to her by her older sister Serena who had known Brianna's mother and had learned the prayer from the Jedi woman. _Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who have trespassed against us… Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who have trespassed against us… Forgive us our…_

It seemed strange the way life had gone on in the few hours since Zeke had left. Bao Dur went back to work on the swoop bike in the garage that he had become obsessed with upgrading. Atton returned to his Pazaak cards, this time without a partner to join him. T3-M4 traveled the corridors of the ship as always. Kreia meditated like she always did. Was Brianna the only one affected by Zeke's absence? The thought of no one else caring made the Handmaiden angry… no. She should stay calm. _Forgive us our trespasses as we…_

Was Zeke alright? Was two hours a long enough time for Brianna to become concerned about his absence? Had he run into trouble? Of course he had; he had foreseen that as well as anyone else, but had he gotten himself out of it? Did he need rescuing or did he already rescue himself? _Stop thinking, Brianna, _she told herself sternly. _…those who have trespassed against us…. Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who have…_

Unable to sit still any longer, Brianna got up and prepared for her second pattern dance of the day. Three deep breaths and then… kick right foot, kick left foot, punch… was he alright? Should she be worried? Flick wrists back to sides, turn, block right hand… was it left hand or right hand? It wasn't working! Nothing was working to take her mind away from Zeke.

Brianna slipped out of the cargo hold and hurried down the corridors of the ship until she reached the cockpit. Perhaps Atton had an answer; he had the other comlink after all, and… Atton was not there.

She raced over to the garage and paused, out of breath, in the doorway. Bao Dur was working with a welding torch. Brianna watched the sparks fly and observed how the light was reflected in the Zabrak's mask until he took notice of her. "Have you seen Atton?"

"Can't say that I have?" he answered, flipping the mask up as he turned off the torch. "Have you checked the cantina?"

"I don't think that it's such a good idea for us to leave the ship and go off on our own."

He chuckled. "Obviously Atton didn't share your opinion."

"Did you see him leave?"

"I might have."

"Where did he say he was going?"

"Told you: the cantina."

She scowled. "I'm going out."

"Thought you said that would be a bad idea."

Shooting the mechanic a patronizing look, Brianna responded, "I can take care of myself."

"So can Atton."

"I don't want to sit here and wait for him to come back!"

"That's what the rest of us are doing. Atton can spend a long night at the cantina for all I care. He'll make himself more of a target than we are right now."

"I wasn't talking about Atton."

Bao Dur took a moment to look the Echani Handmaiden over. "We don't have much in common, you know," he said slowly, "but we care about the General. Maybe not in the same way, but we don't want him to die. None of us want that, not me, not you, not T3," he affectionately looked down at the droid, "not Kreia, and not even Atton. That we have in common. We all stand for different things, but there is our common ground."

"Yes," agreed Brianna. "That is all true."

"It makes we wonder what might happen to all of us if he wasn't around to keep us together."

Just then, Atton staggered into the garage. The pilot looked up at Brianna and Bao Dur and said, "We've got trouble."

"Did you bring it to our front door, fool?" Kreia had appeared in the doorway, having come from her dormitory with unusual speed.

He took a moment to glare at her. "The trouble was coming no matter what I did. I only delayed it." With that, he dragged himself back down the landing ramp and the others were quick to follow.

There was a familiar, too familiar in Brianna's opinion, redhead sitting on the landing ramp as though it were a throne. Hearing them approach, she rose and turned to them with a smirk. "I'm Mira," she said by way of introduction. "I remember you two," she said, indicating Atton and Brianna, "and I'm not sure that I care right now about the rest of you in this particular situation. What matters is that your friend is in trouble."

"What do you mean?" asked Brianna, now even more worried than before.

"What I mean is that Goto has got your friend Zeke Karis and he's in trouble. You remember Visquis, right? He made direct contact with all of you, uh huh?" Unwillingly, Atton nodded. "Well, I've got Visquis's number and he wasn't supposed to do that. The rules of bounty hunting are broken and that means that we're all in trouble. Your friend here," she indicated Atton, "already ran into trouble. I had to bail him out."

Atton had the grace to look crestfallen. Brianna cleared her throat. "Is Zeke alright?"

"No. That guy can usually handle himself, I'll admit. I've been watching you these past few weeks. He has power and the Force is great but it doesn't listen. It's not there to help you when you need it the most, in my opinion anyways." Mira bit her lip. "Your friend is on Goto's yacht. Visquis was betrayed and Zeke Karis got shipped straight to the boss."

"We have to get him back," Bao Dur insisted.

"Will you let me finish?" Mira snapped but she never got a chance to finish.

A large quantity of Duros, mercenaries from their appearance, was approaching the landing pad at a speedy pace. As she watched them move forward, Brianna recognized them to be the Zhug brothers, a mercenary group that had been described to her once by Zeke. But there was hardly time to think about whom exactly they were when they were coming to attack the small party.

Mira glanced back at the bounty hunters. "Looks like the trouble followed us. No time left to explain. Don't let them explain either. Shoot first, ask questions later in my opinion when it comes to these guys."

The Duros in the front began to speaking in lisping Basic. "We have your leader. You will come quietly or we will kill you."

"Like Hell you have their leader," muttered Mira. "You know that Goto has him."

"Which one do you want?" asked Atton conversationally, turning to Mira.

She raised her eyebrows. "Why don't you just shoot already?"

"Well, it's more polite to ask the lady first as to which one she wants…"

"Excuse me?" objected Brianna. "I'm just as female as she is!"

"I don't care which ones you guys want," said Bao Dur. "I just want to shut the mouthy one up already."

Atton nodded, saying, "Like the pretentious schutta he is," and raised his blasters.

A few bloody moments later, Atton rubbed his toe against the metal landing pad and said, "Alright then. Now that that's taken care of, we need a game plan. How do we get to Goto's yacht and who goes and rescues Karis?"

"Zeke told me about a trick you used on Peragus," said Bao Dur as he dusted off his metal arm. "You used a message or a signal or something to bounce a signal back to the sender, right? And you said that Goto has been picking up Vogga's freighters right?"

The pilot shook his head. "I can't bounce any signals back because there were no messages in the first place. When one is raiding a freighter, you don't send a greeting card message. But… what we can do is we can…"

"Why don't we just pretend to be one of Vogga's freighters?" suggested Mira. "Goto's yacht will pick us up in a nanosecond."

"We would need an ID signature card that sent out a signal that we belonged to Vogga and labeled us as a freighter," replied Atton musingly.

"Vogga has a warehouse not too far from here," Brianna pointed out. "Wouldn't that give us the information we need?"

"Bingo," said Atton. He looked around until he spotted T3-M4 beside Bao Dur. Quickly, he knelt beside the droid and said, "Hey there little guy. I need a favor."

T3 beeped suspiciously.

"We need you to infiltrate a warehouse. And… you know, it isn't even more me. It's for Zeke. Your friend, you know?" T3 made an affirmative noise in response. Atton leaned in a little closer and said, "Okay. Here's what you need to do…"

Soon after, T3 departed to do his duty and there was nothing left for Brianna to do now but wait.

.:The _Ebon Hawk_:.

Atton let go of the controls and leaned back in his chair. "Well, they got us now. We're in their tractor beam and they're pulling us up to one of their docking ports. Now all we have to do is decide who's going. Personally, I think that I ought to-"

"Zeke told me that he wanted me to come," interjected Brianna from behind Atton's seat.

"And I have a score to settle with Goto," added Mira.

"And someone has to keep the ship steady," said Brianna sweetly.

"They've got us in a damn tractor beam! Nothing is going to keep the ship more steady than that!"

"Yes, but…" Mira smiled winningly at Atton.

He relented. "Alright then. It looks like it's ladies' night on Goto's yacht." He sighed and flicked a few switches, muttering, "Karis doesn't know how lucky he is."

.:Goto's Yacht:.

After fighting what felt like millions of droids, Brianna brushed one of her braids away from her face. Mira smirked. "Can't keep up, sweetums?"

Brianna's eyes flashed. "Of course I can! Who do you think stopped that security droid form slicing you in half with a laser?"

"So you don't want to count that time I took down the minefield you were about to blunder through and get yourself blown up?"

"Stop," said Brianna. She had learned a thing or two from Bao Dur. "We shouldn't be arguing. What matters is getting Zeke out of here and we need to work together to do that."

Mira smiled. "And there's where we have something in common, Blondie." She slipped down a hallway so quickly that Brianna had to run to keep up and paused before a large door. "Looks like we made it." And sure enough, after she fiddled with the locking mechanism on the door for some time, the door slid open and there was Zeke.

The redhead swaggered slightly, using sly, tripping steps to cross the space between Zeke and herself. "Looks like you were in need of rescuing after all," she purred.

Brianna stared in muted outrage as Zeke smiled down at Mira and said, "I was working on it. Besides, I rescued you first."

"I handled Hanharr all by myself. I'm a big girl."

"I didn't doubt that."

"Can we get moving?" exclaimed Brianna from the doorway. "I'm certain that Goto has realized that his yacht has been invaded by now."

Mira looked up at Zeke one last time. "I suppose that we'll have to make the final decision as to who did the most rescuing later," she said invitingly before moving away and going down the hallway ahead of Brianna and Zeke.

The Handmaiden looked at Zeke accusingly. "How exactly did you 'rescue' her?"

"Can't we discuss that later?"

"I'm just curious." As Zeke moved away, Brianna muttered, "And I am certain that she is too."

For a moment, she wondered how much she and Mira actually had in common.


	4. Imprint

Imprint

By Elle Kitty

_And indeed there will be time_

_To wonder, 'Do I dare?' and 'Do I dare?'_

_Do I dare _

_Disturb the universe?_

_In a minute there is time_

_For decisions and revisions which a minute will reverse._

_The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufock_

_T.S. Elliot_

_Am I the only one that is having trouble wrapping my mind around the fact that there is a murderer, a Jedi killer, on this ship? _Brianna thought as she watched the quiet Miraluka in the corner who had stolen away on their ship while they had all been distracted by Goto and the Jedi master on Nar Shaddaa. The handmaiden watched Visas as the Force sensitive woman took shallow breaths in and out as she meditated in a corner of the starboard dormitory that the three younger women on the ship shared. _Am I the only one who finds it difficult to trust a declared enemy of both Atris and Zeke?_

"Do you trust the Exile's judgment?" asked a quiet calm voice from that same corner. The Miraluka shifted her gaze in the direction of the Echani handmaiden. "Do you even trust your own?"

Mira, who had been noiselessly unpacking her belongings and storing them under her bunk, looked up and glanced between the two other women. "I think it's time for breakfast."

_Get out of my head, _thought Brianna angrily and dearly wanted to tell Visas. _It is a place where one such as you does not belong, just as this ship is not a place where you belong. _But she settled for glaring at their newest companion and stalking out of the dormitory after Mira.

The others had already gathered around the common table; they numbered six, not counting the two droids. Visas slipped past Brianna and made the number seven. _How far we have come, _marveled Brianna silently. They had located the first of four Jedi Masters and had already dealt with the bounty on Jedi. However, their party had expanded to encompass three more members whom Brianna considered to be unwelcome in her eyes: Mira, the bounty hunter who had aided in Zeke's rescue, Goto, or rather Goto's personal representative who had been deployed to oversee the exploits of the Jedi Exile in his attempt to reunify the galaxy under the Jedi and the Republic, and Visas, the Miraluka assassin sent to end Zeke's life.

In regard to Visas, Brianna could not help but agree with an earlier sentiment of Atton's, even though that sentiment had been directed towards the handmaiden herself: _you steal someone's ship here; you don't get invited along for the ride. _If Visas had come to slay the Jedi Exile, as the burns on Zeke's right arm and shoulder could attest to, she should not have been allowed to join their party. Brianna was certain that Atris would agree.

But Atris was not here. And Atris was not Zeke. Zeke trusted too easily in Brianna's opinion. Trust and faith in others was an admirable quality, but only in small doses. Trust too much and one wakes up dead, just as Zeke might have for trusting Mira enough to allow the red haired hunter to take him back to her apartment. And for whatever reason Zeke had allowed that to happen remained a mystery to Brianna. She had seen the way he had looked at Mira in the cantina. She had not liked it, just as she did not like the way he looked at her now from across the table, but just as before she could do nothing about it.

Bao Dur noticed Brianna still standing in the doorway to the corridor and quickly motioned her over to join them. She hesitated but soon found her place between the Zabrak mechanic and Atton. The talk at the table was of how long it would take for the ship to reach Korriban.

"We're going fast enough," commented Atton as he stepped back from the table to grab a glass and fill it with tap water. "Shouldn't be more than a standard day or so. I guess we'll just have to find something to amuse ourselves in the time being."

"I don't like the fact that we have chosen the Sith world to be our next destination," commented Kreia to Zeke who stood beside her. "You are not ready and neither are your companions."

Zeke dropped his cup into the sink in the center of the table. "I will do as I please," he answered with more of a temper than Brianna had ever heard him address Kreia with. "Onderon is in a difficult political… situation and Dantooine has been a mess ever since the Sith fleet rained fire down on the Jedi enclave."

Atton picked up a map from the countertop on the side of the common room and pressed a few buttons on its surface to project a map of the galaxy. "Here's where Nar Shaddaa is," he pointed out a grey globe. "And here is where Korriban is. Now tell me… Kreia," it sounded as though he had difficulty addressing her by her first name, "does it make sense to travel from one end of the galaxy to another when Korriban is directly in the middle?"

Kreia's lips curled into a smirk. "Something tells me that you may not like what others may find out about you when we reach Korriban."

He flinched but said nothing more and everyone else looked to Kreia, waiting for her to reveal more. But the old woman said nothing further and just let her lips remain in a tolerant smile with amusement brimming at the edges. Atton had to endure a moment of everyone looking at him before everyone averted their eyes. Everyone but Mira. Brianna could see how the huntress watched the pilot until he looked up and met her gaze. There was something there; there was nothing there. Everyone knew that Atton had something to hide… everyone it seemed but Zeke.

Brianna looked to the Exile and he looked back. She was sure that he could see the question in her eyes and, sure enough, he put down the bread he held, cleared his throat, and said, "I need someone to look at the burn. Handmaiden?"

She nodded in agreement and the two of them left the room for the medical bay. When they reached the small, white room, Zeke sat down on the bed and Brianna turned to him and said flatly without any preamble, "I want her off of the ship."

Zeke raised his eyebrows. "Is this the Handmaiden speaking or is it Atris?"

"It is me who is speaking. I don't think that we can trust her."

"I presume that we are talking about Visas."

"You presume correctly. She cannot be allowed to stay here."

"Handmaiden," he said and there was something in the way that he said it that made Brianna turn and actually look at him while he spoke. "I can't let her go anywhere else. She isn't safe anywhere else and we are not safe if she is anywhere but where we can see her. We have to allow her sanctuary."

"That does not mean that she should be accepted as one of us! She should not be granted full access to the ship, should not be allowed to listen to our conversations, to our plans. She could be a spy for whoever sent her to us!"

"I could easily say the same about you." Stunned into silence, Brianna could only stare at him. Zeke continued coolly. "She is here for as long as she proves loyal, if that will satisfy you. I did not kill her for a reason; she did not kill me for a reason. There is always a reason and I am certain that she came to us for one. You have to accept her."

"That does not mean that I have to trust her."

"That is not my problem." Once again, they stared at each other for a moment. "You can't make me do everything you want me to, Handmaiden, and neither can Atris. I am tired of listening to others tell me what to do. If I want to go to Korriban, I will go to Korriban. If I want Visas to stay aboard my ship, Visas will stay aboard my ship. If I want to go to war, I will go to war," he said and then Brianna was certain that he was no longer talking about the present. "I will do as I please."

Brianna held out a hand. Zeke blinked up at her. "What?"

"You wanted me to take a look at your burns, so I will do so. If you no longer require me to perform this service for you, allow me to leave you."

Zeke took a long look at her and then pulled his shirt off. The Handmaiden willed the blood not to rush to her face and coolly applied a salve to the burns seared into his right arm and shoulder. As she did so, he asked, "Why don't you trust her?"

She stepped back and washed her hands off. Looking into the mirror above the sink, she directed her response to Zeke's reflection rather than to him, "Why don't you take a look at that burn and answer that question for yourself." She wiped her hands off on a towel and moved to leave the room. "When you are quite finished with this rebellious phase, come find me."

.:Two Standard Hours Later:.

_Am I the only one who is having difficulty occupying my mind? _This thought rang through Brianna's mind as she toured the ship. Hyperspace made her feel… restless. She paused at the garage and watched as Bao Dur and T3-M4 busied themselves with the swoop bike, stopped near the cockpit where Atton fiddled with his Pazaak cards, and listened for the briefest of moments near the closed door of Kreia's quarters. Brianna had never found any solace in meditation so the observation of one who did mystified the Echani.

The only places she did not approach were the starboard dormitory, even though she had every right to be there as the Miraluka who knelt on the metal floor there, and the medical bay for she knew that Zeke had remained there long after she left. For all she knew, he was no longer there but Brianna found that wherever he went, there was a… echo of his presence. It was as though he had pressed his hand to the wall and left a tangible imprint. Brianna had felt it long after he left the antechamber in the Telos ice cap where he had confronted Atris. It was as though his proud voice still rang through the cavern and would still for all of eternity, haunting Atris and, if she had not gone with him, haunting Brianna too. His existence had followed through the Telos Jedi Academy like a river with an impossibly strong current; it was impossible not to follow him. But Brianna had felt a kind of… possessiveness. As though she wanted to be the only one to truly follow him. She did not want to feel it again, that wanting, for she feared it would swallow her up and consume her. It was like a gaping hole that she could fall into and never climb back out of. It was for that reason she did not enter places the Exile had recently vacated.

She returned to her cargo hold and prepared to begin a pattern dance but something stopped her before she could move through the first steps. Atton Rand was leaning against the doorframe with his arms folded and an eyebrow raised. "Don't you ever give it a rest?"

To give him an answer, she quickly began again. As she worked through the next movements, Atton began to inch around here deliberately giving the Echani hardly any space to work in. "Do you mind?" asked Brianna through clenched teeth. "I _wouldn't _want to hit you in the face. I really _wouldn't_."

"Don't let me stop you. I'm just the innocent bystander looking for something in the cargo hold." Atton reached behind a few storage cylinders and picked up a robe of silvery gray fabric. "What the Hell is this?"

"Give me that." Brianna tried to snatch it from his grasp.

Ignoring her, he replied, "I thought you always wore… white. Like, always. This isn't an Echani robe, that's for sure." He inspected it more closely. "What the Hell are you doing with a gray Jedi robe? I didn't know they even made ones like that."

"As though you have much experience with Jedi robes," she responded coolly.

"More than you have, probably."

"Experience with what?" Zeke was standing in the doorway. He threw an amused glance at Brianna. "I'm done with my rebellious phase, Mother."

Atton snorted. "I thought Kreia was the one setting herself up to be your parent, not little Miss Handmaiden." He let go of the handful of robe he still had in his grasp, rummaged through the nearest storage cylinder until he uncovered a bottle of something, and then left the cargo hold without a backward glance.

Zeke moved a little closer to Brianna, fascinated by the clothes she held in her hands. "You have a Jedi robe?"

She hesitated. The robe and its story of how it had come to her had always been something she had had to conceal from the rest of her sisters and especially from Atris. Jealousy had reigned supreme over the Echani sisters. But she supposed that Zeke would understand.

"It was… it was my mother's. I do not know her name. My father hardly spoke of her but… there was this one day where I stole into my father's quarters on the Republic ship where we were staying and there was this beautiful woman leaving his room. I hid behind a cabinet and watched her go. In that moment, I think I knew who she was. Later that week, I was in the laundry area of the ship; I was very young, but Echani children are hardly ever treated as mere children so I often went off by myself. There were several Jedi staying aboard the ship at the time and it was their laundry that was going through the system. I saw… I saw this pile of freshly laundered silver-grey robes in a pile on one of the machines. They were like the ones that the beautiful woman wore. I took one, just one set of robes, and I hid them from my father. He didn't know that I had them, not until years later when Lyra my sister found them buried in my footlocker in the room that she, Alianne, and I shared and brought them to him. I thought he would be angry," Brianna laughed softly, "but he let me keep them. He said that Adele and my other sisters had dozens of trinkets of their mother's so why should I not have my own mother's robes. And since then, I cannot remember a time when I have traveled without them. I look at them, and I always remember her as she walked out of my father's rooms. I suppose I imprinted on her." She looked up at the Exile. "I don't even know why I am telling you this."

He ran his hands along the robes; she could feel the heat of his palms through the thin material. "I haven't seen Jedi robes in a very long time." Zeke looked up at her, brown eyes full of questions. "Your mother was a Jedi?"

Suddenly shy, Brianna stepped backward; gently pulling the robes from his hands and the gray fabric fell and floated so that the hem skimmed the metal floor. "I don't know her name."

"You mentioned your sisters. Would they not have wanted you to have the robes?"

Flushing slightly, she answered, "They would rather I had nothing of my mother's. They call me the 'Last of the Handmaidens' not because I am youngest but because they feel that I am the least talented at the fighting arts. They hate the fact that I am different, that my mother is not theirs and that their mother is not mine, and I hate them for hating me for what they think me to be and not for what I am."

"And you define yourself as a part of your mother," he tried to come to a conclusion.

She nodded and said awkwardly, "The only thing I have of her is myself. Myself and this robe. Therefore, the only mediums I can use to learn more about her, whatever her name was, are this robe and me. Because of that, no matter what my sisters do, I will never give either of those things up."

"I used to define myself by the things people saw in me: loyalty, trustworthiness, cowardice, selfishness," he said that last word with a ghost of a smile. "Whatever they called me, I saw that thing inside of myself. Whatever Revan called me, I was. When I was exiled, I had to find something in myself to keep me… steady. I hardly had anything to hold on to; I was a cipher on the Outer Rim, a natural loner. Without the Force, there was suddenly nothing remarkable about me it seemed. Nothing worth commenting on anyways." He paused before asking, "Have you ever put them on? Could I see you in them?"

Brianna took another step backwards. He sounded too eager, too much like Visquis's trap. He was a trap, an easy trap to fall into, as Atris said. And Brianna knew that she would all too willingly trip over any wires he set for her, willingly step onto ground that she knew to be false and fall into the pit like some unwitting animal. If he were a train, she might very well lie down on the tracks if she were not careful to catch herself instead of waiting for him to catch her.

"No," she said. "I've never put them on and I never will. Echani… Echani and Jedi are different and they should not be mixed. One cannot be both at once and when they are all muddled up together, the results are… unfortunate. I will do many things for you, but this is one thing I will not." She took a look around her and said, "This ship is too small."

"What do you mean? Are you –are you trying to _avoid _me, handmaiden?"

"No!" Very flustered, Brianna continued. "It isn't that, there's just no –there's no breathing room, that's all. I'm –I'm sorry. Hyperspace travel… it's just… I'm sorry," she said because there seemed to be little else to say.

"Exile?" Visas stood in the doorway where Zeke had stood what seemed moments before. 'wondering if you would –oh." She caught sight of Brianna standing with silvery fabric in her arms. "I'm sorry if you are… busy. Perhaps later."

"Now is fine," said Zeke, brown eyes never leaving Brianna. "I'll give you all of the breathing room you need, Handmaiden."

.:One Standard Day Later:.

A night had passed but Brianna had found little solace in the cargo hold. Zeke had left and he had been with Visas ever since. They were closing in on Korriban, or so Atton had said when he came by an hour or so ago and banged on the door. Brianna lay on her practice mat with a blanket thrown over her head, the lock on the cargo hold door jammed so that only she could open it. She did not want any more surprises or, rather, any more deranged pilots, questioning Exiles, or untrustworthy Miralukas standing in her doorway.

As she turned about on her mat, she heard the sound of the _Hawk_'s landing gear being activated as they descended through the atmosphere of Korriban. She heard a distinct thud as they landed softly on the desert sands and it was only then that Brianna tossed aside her blanket, fixed the lock on the cargo hold, and stepped out into the corridor.

Bao Dur walked by and smiled warily at her as he paused. "We've just landed. It's about seven o'clock in the evening on the planet. I'm not sure if the general is going to head out yet. Maybe it's best we wait 'til the morning."

"Don't you think that there's something… wrong about this place?" asked Brianna before she could stop herself. "Not the ship, Korriban. There's something that's just… wrong about this planet. It's like a whisper… a ghost's whisper. Do you hear it?"

He nodded slowly. "It seems… dead. It's like everything on this planet that was once alive has crawled under the surface and those that didn't shriveled up and died. It feels the way… the way that Telos did before the Restoration Project."

Shaking her head, Brianna disagreed. "No. There is evil here. What the Sith did to Telos was evil, without a doubt, but it was one act of iniquity, one fell swoop that ended the planet's life. What is here is different. It feels as though Korriban has been dying for an eternity, that there is evil sown into the land and is slowly poisoning it. That's how it feels."

Bao Dur raised his eyebrows. "You know Korriban to be all of this and you haven't stepped out onto the planet's surface?"

"Does one always need to take a good hard look at something before one determines whether it is evil or not?"

The question was absurd but it did not seem that way to Bao Dur. He shook his head and murmured, "Not always."

"So you agree?"

"I believe that there are some things in this world that are inherently evil. I also believe that it's best for one to take that long hard look before delivering the bottom line. But… Korriban…" His mouth twisted downwards. "I think I'll make an exception for this place. Whatever happened here, I already know it to be evil."

Atton came down the corridor, shedding his fingerless gloves as he did so. His face was pale. "Anyone else catch the feeling that we're not supposed to be here?"

"You're right about that," said Mira as she moved towards them with Visas following. "There's something wrong with this place. Plus," he face regained a bit of color and her usual mood returned with the blood to her face, "you all are creating a traffic jam and I need to get somewhere. Beep, beep."

She moved on and Visas followed. As the Miraluka followed, Brianna caught sight of Visas's face and its expression. The woman was calm, almost serene. _Of course, _thought Brianna with an unusual humor that was not unlike Atton's. _She's a Sith, this is a Sith world. They're both slowly dying inside. Like the Exile._

That last thought took her by surprise but she knew it to be true. However, she pushed it to the back of her mind and prepared to move on.

Atton shook his head. "Whatever the Sith did here, they haven't dropped it. Whether they're still around or not, they definitely left their calling card on this planet's surface."

As the pilot moved away, Zeke and Kreia approached. They appeared to be in deep discussion and Atton paused in his retreat, saying, "What's the game plan?"

The Exile looked up. "I'm going out," he stated firmly. "Where's Visas?" The Miraluka appeared behind Atton. "You and Kreia are coming with me."

Brianna watched him go, bending his head in quiet conference with the Miraluka woman. As soon as she was certain he had descended down the landing ramp, she asked Atton and Bao Dur, "Why would he want those two to come with him?"

Atton's tone was grim as he answered, "So that he and the two ladies could have a little Sith tea party with the ghost of Ajunta Pal –I don't know, Handmaiden! I don't like the fact that he's going out there with those two but there isn't anything we can do to change it. He'll be back before too long, I'm sure. Pazaak game, Bao Dur?"

As the Zabrak nodded, she lifted her white hood and said, "I'm going out."

"What do you mean?"

"Yeah," said Atton, echoing Bao Dur, "What do you mean?"

"That I'm going out for a walk. I'll see you soon." And they watched her descend down the landing ramp and go.

.:The Valley of the Dark Lords:.

Her white boots sunk into the sands as she traversed the barren surface of Korriban, looking up at the enormous structures around her. The Sith had definitely left more than just the imprint of their evil doings when they left this planet. The tombs rose up above her, towering structures, but they were about to be reclaimed by the sands they had risen out of. Glory fades, the sands remain. Brianna wondered how long it took for one's name to be forgotten.

"Hey, wait up." Brianna turned to see Mira jogging slightly in order to catch up to the Handmaiden. Behind the huntress, she could just barely make out the outline of the ship. Mira fell into step with Brianna. "I don't know why you and Visas are acting so pissy," she said matter-of-factly. "He's my bounty. After all, I caught him."

"He was imprisoned by me and my sisters long before he ever met you," replied Brianna in her defense.

"But you're not a hunter; therefore, the same rules don't apply to you. Look," said Mira as her boot sank several inches into the sand with her next step, "if you really want a man, Handmaiden, you jab him with a stunner and knock him out. Then you starve him for a couple of days until he's open to suggestion and then you check up on his bounty and see if he's worth anything."

"That sounds more like hunting," said Brianna suspiciously.

Mira shrugged. "Call it what you will. Me, I love my targets."

"Is that what you're planning to do to Zeke?"

The huntress laughed out loud. "Me? Zeke? No. But," she sounded thoughtful, "that might just be what I do to Atton, if only to find out what he's hiding from all of us." Then she shivered. "There's something wrong about this place."

"I know. I could feel it even from within the ship."

"It's the exact opposite of Nar Shaddaa. There's no pulse, no noise. There's no… life. I'm going to have to ask Zeke if we can go back to Nar Shaddaa soon."

"You'd leave us?"

She laughed. "Hell, no! I couldn't leave if I wanted to." Then, more softly, she said, "There's something about Zeke. There's something I… can't resist. He's a man like any other, a handsome man to be sure, but I've resisted better looking guys before. And, besides, I don't think of him that way. But he's got a… pulse, the way Nar Shaddaa does. Like the beating of a heart. Like a flame. You can't help but want to be near him. You get that, right?"

"More than you could know," answered Brianna fervently.

"Right. It's like, wherever he goes, he leaves an echo of himself. He leaves something behind. I came with him because I didn't want to be part of the thing he left behind, if you can understand that."

"More than you could know," repeated Brianna as she stared out onto the sands of Korriban. "More than you could know."


	5. Ashes

Ashes

By Elle Kitty

_For I have known them already, known them all-_

_Have known the evenings, mornings, afternoons,_

_I have measured out my life with coffee spoons;_

_I know the voices dying with a dying fall_

_Beneath the music from a farther room._

_ So how should I presume?_

_The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufock_

_T. S. Elliot_

Brianna listened for the sound of Zeke's step, for the quiet patter of his footsteps as he ascended the landing ramp, but she heard nothing. Nothing but Mira's quiet breathing as the huntress slept and nothing but the whisper of the wind as it licked against the window. Nothing but the familiar padding of Brianna's boots against the metal floor of the dormitory as the Handmaiden got up out of her bed and began to pace. Impatient, she glanced at the clock and the LED screen answered: 12:23.

Five hours. Five hours since Zeke, Visas, and Kreia walked off into the sands of Korriban and slipped across the desert floor until they were out of sight among the ruins and still there was no sign of or word from any of them. Five hours of Atton flipping cards, Mira sleeping, Bao-Dur working, and Brianna waiting and still Zeke was not to be seen.

Brianna listened but she could not hear what she was listening for. For a moment, a nanosecond, she thought she could feel the Exile's presence through the Force or through some other chain that linked the two of them together, but Brianna was no Jedi, a fact she was painfully aware of. She had once hoped that there was something different about her, something other than her mother's face that gave her a reason for wanting to be different than her sisters, but there had never been anything that truly set her apart. Often, the Handmaiden wondered if anything would have been different had Atris asked Adele, Serena, or any of the other Echani sisters to go along with the Exile rather than Brianna. They would all have done their duty, played their parts to perfection, but perhaps Adele would have managed Zeke with more skill. Maybe Clytemnestra would have put Atton in his place. Serena might have quietly befriended each of the crew members and Lyra might have earned respect through prowess in battle. Alianne would have easily forged bonds with Zeke, Atton, and Mira as her impulsive nature was similar to theirs. But it had been Brianna whom Atris had chosen. And it was Brianna who was doing everything wrong.

"What is wrong with you this time?" Atton wondered aloud from where he stood in the doorway, dressed only in his boxers and a T-shirt that labeled him "most handsome pilot in the galaxy." "You never got this way on Nar Shaddaa when Karis was out 'til three in the morning. He isn't alone, you know; he's going to come back. Go to bed and get some sleep."

"Atton," said Mira's voice from her bunk. She sat up, clutching the bed sheet up to meet the neckline of her black shirt as she did so. "Leave Echani girl alone for a bit, okay? She has enough problems." When Atton did not retreat, she added, "Do not make me get up and chase you back to the garage, flyboy."

He smirked but Brianna quickly spoke up. "Korriban is different from Nar Shaddaa. It's too dangerous to be out at night like this. It isn't safe out there and if we all go to sleep, we'll have to raise the landing ramp."

"We wouldn't want any stray undead to sneak aboard." Atton did not bother to conceal his p amusement.

"But if we raise the ramp, Zeke, Kreia, and Visas won't be able to get back on the ship! We have to keep the ramp lowered and, furthermore, we have to go out and find them."

"It's too dangerous," Atton replied with a shake of his head. "We have to stick to the ship until morning."

Brianna pursed her lips but said nothing. Though she did not want to admit it, she knew Atton to be right. It would do Zeke no good if they were to become lost in the desert. But patience had never been one of the Echani Handmaiden's virtues.

Recognizing Brianna's restlessness with unusual perception, Atton sighed and said, "Look: it's been a long day and we're all tired. Let's just get some shuteye already. If you're really bent on it, you can go and sit on the ramp and wait for Karis to show up, but I'm for bed."

As he left, Mira turned to Brianna and commented, "He's right, you know. I wouldn't trust Rand with a single credit chip but I can tell that he's got an instinct for survival."

"I'm not about to willingly walk into a nest of tukatas," said Brianna with annoyance. "I won't go out walking but can we really leave Zeke out in the desert like this?"

Mira only shrugged, apparently unimpressed by such a display. "Zeke can take care of himself. I've seen how you act every time he steps off of the sip and I'm telling you that you can't follow him everywhere he goes."

"I'm trying to be patient," Brianna told her through clenched teeth. "I know that I cannot always be at his side but I cannot help but doubt the loyalties of those who currently are at his side. I want what's best for him and what's best for the mission and I do not believe that one such as Visas belongs in either of those categories."

"And you never want what's good for you," said Mira with disbelief, ignoring Brianna's comment about Visas. "Don't you have enough sense to realize that waiting all night isn't going to make Zeke come back any faster?"

"I know," relented the handmaiden although her stubborn nature made her want to further resist Mira's common sense. "But I cannot help but worry." As a slight grinding noise was heard, she added, "And there's Atton raising the ramp. Perhaps I should sleep after all."

Mira nodded and slid back under the covers of her bunk, closing her green eyes as she did so. Brianna nodded again, more to herself than to the huntress, and climbed into bed. She pressed her cheek against the cotton sheet of the pillowcase before closing her eyes and trying to find comfort in the knowledge that Zeke was not out on the dunes alone. But, as sleep descended on the Echani Handmaiden, she began to find that dreams and reality are closer than she thought and had the feeling that Zeke, wherever he was, was in the process of finding the same thing to be true.

…

Brianna dreamed. She dreamed that Zeke was alone in the dark, that he was arguing with a man he called "Alek" whom Brianna knew as Malak, that he was fighting Mandalorians, that he was fighting Kreia, Bao-Dur, Atton. For one terrifying moment, she thought she was the one fighting the Exile. One phrase, both revolting and appealing all at the same time, rang in her mind: apathy is death. And just as she was about to cut Zeke down, her unfamiliar silver lightsaber came crashing down onto Zeke's orange blade and Brianna's blue-gray eyes met Zeke's for an instant and then…

…And then Brianna woke up in a cold sweat, bolting upright in her bunk as her eyes shot open. She peered around the corner of her bunk to see if Mira had been plagued by similar nightmares and, sure enough, the auburn haired huntress was sitting up, wide awake, with her feet dangling above the metal floor. Mira then turned her head and read Brianna's expression in an instant, saying, "You too? You had a dream too, didn't you?"

"I dreamed… I dreamed…" Brianna hesitated for a moment. Having visions like her dream was a matter best left to the Jedi or the Sith and Brianna was neither. But if Mira was having similar dreams, perhaps Brianna's vision could be attributed to Korriban and not to some other strange knowledge that she knew lay deep inside of her. Atris had always instructed all of her handmaidens to smother whatever inklings of the Force that might "lurk in the dark corners of their minds" and, well, Brianna had always been Atris's favorite servant.

As though sensing Brianna's apprehension, Mira slid off of her bunk and crossed the dormitory in two quick strides, stretching her arms. "I dreamed that we were all in a dark room," she said as she ran her fingers along the waistband of her sweatpants, fingering lingering where her blaster would rest under any other circumstances. "I remember saying something to Kreia along the lines of: 'You're threatening Atton with a lightsaber and you expect me to stand by and watch?'"

"Was Kreia threatening Atton with a lightsaber?"

Mira shrugged. "Well, technically, Atton's lightsaber came out first but Kreia was the one who told me to 'stay out of it.' I _don't _stay out of things and I'd take Atton over Kreia any day."

"Did you –did you fight anyone?" Brianna asked tentatively.

"Well… yeah. I mean, everyone's holding out lightsabers and we're not fighting? The funny thing is, I threatened Kreia, but I fought Karis. It was… It was just that he wasn't doing anything, you know? Kreia was threatening Atton and Atton was threatening Kreia and then the lightsabers and blasters all came out and still Karis did nothing. Most annoying thing in the world, right? Anyways, instead of doing something, he just called us all visions as though that was that. It was _my_ dream and, since it was my dream, _I_ certainly wasn't a vision! And then Kreia started saying something like 'apathy is death' and then we all attacked Karis and then I woke up. The end." She rubbed her eyes. "Do you remember your dream?"

"Not nearly so vividly," she responded as the dormitory door opened.

Atton was standing in the doorway again and he was about to say something but stumbled over his words when he caught sight of Mira standing with her arms folded and charmingly sporting a case of bed head. "Tach got your tongue?" she asked idly.

He shook his head and said, "The wind is kicking up like mad, howling through the canyons and dragging the sand along with it. It's a mess out there."

"Have Zeke, Kreia, and Visas returned?" asked Brianna hopefully but she doubted that they had.

He shook his head again. "Nope. And no word on the comlink either. They're out there on their own, that's for sure. Although…" He then stood very still with his head cocked to one side as though he had heard something but couldn't be sure and was now waiting to hear it again.

"What?" asked Mira, instantly alert.

Brianna listened too. Underneath the wail of the wind and the beating of sand against the plasteel windowpane, there was a small tapping noise. The Handmaiden quickly stood up and peered out of the window. "Let the ramp down," she commanded Atton. "There are two people down there and one of them has been throwing rocks at the window."

"Two people?" repeated Mira, a little crease crinkling her brow. "Only two?"

Atton nodded as he checked the window for himself. "With any luck, they lost Kreia."

The three of them walked down to the landing ramp and, as Atton flicked the switches on the wall to lower the landing ramp, it became apparent that it was not Kreia who had been left behind, but Zeke. When Brianna realized this, frustration began to seep into every fiber of her being until she demanded of the old woman and the quiet Miraluka, "Where is he? What happened out there?"

The corners of Kreia's mouth were folded downward in a determined grimace. Fury radiated from the old master, as tangible as venom dripping from a blade and poisoning the ground below it. Despite herself, Mira flinched as she asked, "What's going on?"

Kreia pushed past the huntress as the old woman made her way to her abode. "The Exile has made an extremely hasty decision, a result of his pervading ignorance, and I do not condone it. He has gravely disobeyed and disappointed me and I will not walk out onto the surface of Korriban with him again."

"That didn't really answer our question," said Atton. "We really don't care about how you feel about what he did; we just want to know what he did."

But Kreia had not been interested in taking any questions and had already walked away. Brianna was struck by the sudden desire to storm after her and shake the old woman until she revealed what Zeke had done and where he was now but she quickly realized that Visas was present and had probably seen and heard as much as Kreia had. Also, judging by the fact that Visas had not walked away like Kreia had, the quiet Miraluka was probably more willing to explain what had happened.

Even without Brianna's asking, Visas turned towards Atton, Mira, and the Handmaiden and said, "We went into a network of caves and came across a… tomb. It was cut into the wall of the cavern, as great as any of the tombs in the valley and yet somehow more forbidden. The structure seemed intact, surprisingly undisturbed by grave robbers and the like, Kreia did not wish Zeke to enter the cave and expressed that sentiment twice, once at the mouth of the cave and again at the entrance to the tomb itself. Zeke Karis defied her both times."

"At least he's being consistent," Atton muttered.

"But Kreia has a point," Mira argued. "Zeke shouldn't be running around strange tombs and especially not alone."

"Why didn't you go with him?" Brianna demanded. "If you couldn't convince him not to go, why did you let him go alone?"

To everyone's surprise, Visas shrugged. "The tomb may be a powerful place," she told them, "but the Exile is a powerful man. I was certain he could take care of himself."

"'Was?'" repeated Bao-Dur suspiciously. He had just come from the engine room.

"Yeah," agreed Atton with a nod, "'was' being the operative word here. What made you change your mind? Would it be, oh I don't know, the _fact that he hasn't come back_?"

"Yes…" agreed Visas with hesitation. "He didn't come out again. Kreia said we should come back to the ship."

A moment of silence passed as they digested this information. Then, it seemed as though the world exploded between Bao-Dur, Atton, Mira, and Brianna.

"How long has the general been in there?"

"You actually listened to Kreia? She is there to be ignored!"

"You didn't think about waiting for him to come out?"

"Did you even think at all?"

That final remark, as cutting at Atton's favorite knife, was uttered by Brianna. The Echani Handmaiden seemed rather stunned by her own outburst and was struck by the feeling that she ought to remedy the situation. But at the same time, she knew what she said and she knew that she meant it to. It was for that reason that she met Visas's gaze without flinching and said, "It would seem as though Mira, Atton, Bao-Dur, and I will have to go and find him, doesn't it?"

But Mira shook her head. "We can't," she told the handmaiden sadly. "We shouldn't go out there. Not until the storm clears up."

"But what if he's out there? Alone. Waiting for us."

T3-M4 beeped unhappily but it was Bao-Dur who said softly, "The general wouldn't want us going out there to look for him, not when it could mean risking our lives for his. We all want to look for him but I'm not certain that he wants us looking."

"What?"

"Do not presume," said Visas icily to the Handmaiden, "that you are the only person on this ship who cares for the Exile."

As the Miraluka walked away from the others with that single departing barb, Atton cleared his throat and said, "Yeah… catfight… anyone besides me want a nightcap? Bao-Dur? Mira?"

Much to his obvious disappointment, both declined with a shake of the head and Atton knew better than to ask the Handmaiden. Mira stepped forward and placed a hand on Brianna's shoulder. "You need to sleep."

Brianna shrugged Mira's hand away with an air more typical of her usual frosty demeanor. "I am fine," she told them. "As always, I am fine."

…

"Where is the tomb?"

Kreia's withered lips curled into a satisfied smile but Brianna couldn't see the old woman's expression. The Handmaiden stood in the doorway, face full of grim determination. Brianna did not like coming into Kreia's domain and usually tried to keep out of her path. In Atris's opinion, the only significance the old woman bore in regard to Brianna's mission was in how much Zeke allowed Kreia to influence his actions. If there was something in that tomb that Kreia had forbidden Zeke to see, Brianna intended to find out what it was and, more importantly, where the tomb was and how to get to it.

"Why do you ask?" replied Kreia cryptically. "Why did you seek me out? You have never done so in the past, servant of Atris."

"My mistress told me to be wary of you. She warned me that someone so untrusting of others is likely to be untrustworthy herself. But she also told me that an elderly woman missing an arm might prove to be of little to no consequence. But I have seen now how you exert your influence over others, the Exile among them. I realize that my mistress may have been mistaken. I have seen Zeke listen to your thoughts and obey your command on many an occasion. But this time he didn't listen to you. Why is that?"

"What a pretty speech. Very flattering to me, is it not? But what you have said works both ways, servant of Atris. You don't trust me so why should I trust you? You don't trust the Exile so why should he trust you? I am an old woman, as you said, simple and content in solitude. I am harmless, only here to aid in preserving the safety and anonymity of the Exile. I bear no ill will toward you or toward your mistress. Why would you ever believe otherwise? Have you been listening to the ramblings of the fool in the cockpit?"

"I listen to only what is logical and to those whom I trust."

"It's a shame then that you listen to what Atris has spoon fed you rather than listening to your instincts, to the things you know to be true rather than what you have been told is true. Have you ever wondered, little handmaiden, what might happen if you consulted your feelings rather than your thoughts? Did you ever imagine that you might be swept away into the current of something greater than you could ever understand?"

"No," answered the Handmaiden, stoic in her determination not to trust Kreia.

"Did you ever think that you might do something to affect the tide of the galaxy?" Kreia asked the younger, less ambitious woman. "You perform errands for your mistress like a puppy turning tricks but did you ever think to dream of learning to hunt and pulling down a great prize for yourself?"

"I never. I never think of personal gain for myself."

"Forgive me if I find that to be difficult to believe." Kreia rose and turned about to face Brianna, the set of her mouth and the tone of her voice indicating that the old woman had a distaste for this conversation. "So, you want to know where the tomb is? Fair enough. I'll tell you, if only to convince you of my intentions: go up the path out of the valley that leads to the old Academy, turn right and go through the cave until you come upon a bridge and a door. That instruction should suffice."

Brianna turned to leave but Kreia held up a hand. "Tell me, child: did you ever know your mother?"

The handmaiden paused at the door. "Atris was all I needed," she said and then she left.

…

Brianna hurried through the cave but the echoes of her boots pounding against the floor made it seem as though there were a hundred handmaidens running through the caverns, splashing through the puddles, and sometimes tripping over rocks and falling into the dust. The scent of decay invaded the air and the handmaiden thought she could also detect the smell of a recent kill, an odor more pungent and nauseating than the other. Her next step confirmed her suspicions; as she shook her boot clean as best she could, she made note of the fact that Zeke, Kreia, and Visas had indeed cleared the cave out of any vicious creatures, much to Brianna's relief.

It was cold inside of the cave and so teeming with muck and filth that the handmaiden was quite certain that, when she finally exited the cavern, she would look like a shyrack herself. She comforted herself with the fact that Zeke was somewhere in the cave too and that he could be waiting for Brianna this one time, instead of Brianna always having to wait for Zeke to come back from his missions. And, sure enough, as Brianna turned a corner, palm pressed against the cave wall to help her keep her footing, she saw him as he stood on a bridge over a deep chasm, orange lightsaber ignited.

"Zeke," said Brianna, picking up her pace as she moved towards him, boots crunching against the rocks on the ground. "What happened? I was –we were all-"

But then he turned towards her and she saw on expression on his face that she did not recognize. The Exile sported the face of a haunted man, old before his time, and the glow from his weapon mimicked orange flames licking against his skin, consuming him. Brianna stopped in her tracks and took a moment to look at him. "Zeke," she said once more, this time more cautiously. "It's me. The Handmaiden. I've come to take you back to the ship."

His expression sprung to life and the Exile was instantly both alert and suspicious. "You're not a vision?" he demanded. "You didn't follow me out of the tomb? I don't want to be plagued by visions, not when I'm finally free of that mind trap."

"I'm not a vision, Zeke. Whatever happened in that tomb, I'm not a part of it. I promise you. Let's get back to the ship." She took another step towards him as he shut off his lightsaber, snapping a glow stick as she did so, replacing the orange light with green. "How do you feel?"

"I'm fine," Zeke answered automatically but then shook his head. "I'm not fine," he admitted. "I feel like a child. I disobeyed Kreia in order to prove to her that I could disobey her and, in the end, she was right. I wasn't ready for that and I realize how naïve I was to believe otherwise."

"What did you see? What was in there?"

"A nightmare. That's what was in there. Things that happened in my past that I didn't want to relive, things that could be happening even now that I may not realize are happening, and some things in the future that I may not want to happen."

"Do you think those things will happen? Can you do anything to keep them from happening?"

He merely shrugged. "Who can say? I believe in destiny but I also believe that someone, anyone, can change their fate. The Force is an ever changing entity and no one can say what can and can't happen. Sometimes, the Force allows Jedi –and Sith –small glimpses into potential futures to see what might be, but one can never be confident in such visions. The choices of individuals will always warp future possibilities and the only constant is change, so what I saw could all amount to nothing." But then a look of uncertainty crossed his face. "And yet what I saw seemed a rather plausible future."

Brianna shook her head. "That can't be the future," she stated firmly, forgetting herself. "None of us would ever turn on you, no matter what you said."

"Wait," he said. "What? You know –you know what happened in that tomb?"

Flustered, she tried to brush aside what she had allowed to slip out. "Not me," she lied hastily. "Not me. Mira. Mira had a dream that she was fighting you with… with a lightsaber. She barely mentioned it to me; I don't know much about it."

Zeke appeared thoughtful and Brianna was relieved that she had succeeded in diverting his attention from herself. "Mira… Mira had this dream? But I thought –never mind. We should get back to the ship. Tomorrow, we need to find what we came to Korriban for."

"Agreed," responded Brianna promptly and turned to lead the way back to the ship. Zeke did not follow and, when she glanced back towards him, there was laughter in his brown eyes.

"Handmaiden," he said as he took in her mud splattered robes, "I think it's time for a laundry day."

…

Zeke went to sleep when they returned to the _Hawk _and did not awaken until noon the following afternoon. After a quick conference, Atton, Brianna, Mira, and Bao-Dur found him sitting in the central room, quietly sipping caffa out of a chipped cup and typing something into a datapad. Sensing their approach, Zeke looked up and said, "Mira, could I talk to you for a moment?"

"There's three of us here, if you didn't notice," said Atton irritably. "I'll admit that Mira is the most striking one, but, for some inexplicable reason, we all want to know the answer to the same question."

"Shocking," said Zeke dryly. "May I ask what that question is?"

"That's an easy one," said Mira. "What. Were. You. Thinking?"

"Were you even thinking?" Atton asked incredulously.

Brianna shot a look in Atton's direction in reproach for his use of her earlier sentiment. Clearing her throat slightly, she tentatively smiled, saying, "We were all very worried when we heard that you'd gone off on your own, especially when Kreia had expressly advised you to do otherwise. We're all very concerned about your safety, sometimes even more concerned about you than you yourself are."

"What she's trying to tell you," said Mira, "is that we're trying to keep you alive and you going off all AWAL isn't exactly making our job any easier. We really don't want you to get blown up or pecked to death by shyracks or something."

"And," Goto input idly from the corner he usually lurked in, "when the only hope for peace in the galaxy has a death wish, that doesn't bode well for business, which is the only reason you're alive, Karis."

"I didn't know you cared, Goto," said Zeke offhandedly. He got up from the table and crossed the room, looking at the projection of Korriban hovering in the middle of the room. "Look, I get the idea but there are things that I-"

"-'need to do on your own' blah blah blah la di a di da," interjected Mira with a roll of her eyes. "Look: _we _get it. It's not like we don't understand where you're coming from, we're just telling you that it isn't going to fly anymore. You need us. We need you. We do things together. Got it?"

Zeke began to shake his head but Atton cut in before the Exile could say anything. "No. You got it and, if you don't… well, you said I fixed the lock on the cargo hold doors for a reason, didn't you? Can we just do what we came to this place to do already? Because, to be honest, Korriban gives me the creeps."

"Korriban is a powerful place," countered Visas as she emerged from a hallway. "The planet bears its ghosts with a great dignity and has the feeling of a burning fire that can never be quenched."

"Oh, well, dignified ashes then," said Atton. "Whatever was here burned up a long time ago and I don't plan to stick around for the next big Sith bonfire party. Can we get a move on?"

Anxious to play peacemaker, Brianna interrupted, "Korriban is a powerful place but it is also a dangerous place. It might be best if we do as Atton suggests and do our business as quietly as possible and then depart with haste."

The Exile nodded, either defeated by his companions' determination or humoring them for the next few moments before he did something on his own again. Brianna could never be sure and, sometimes, she'd rather not know. Zeke nodded again, this time at Mira, Atton, and Brianna. "Well then, if you're all so concerned about my safety, the four of us will go and take a look at that old Sith Academy. Bao-Dur, can you make sure that everything is prepped for departure. I really don't want to stick around here and I don't think that any of the rest of you do either."

…

Atton wrinkled his nose in distaste as Zeke opened the Academy door. As the stone door rolled open, a gust of cold air greeted them, ruffling Zeke's brown hair and blowing sand into his three companions' eyes. "Ugh," said Atton. "It smells like something died in there and I'm not sure if it's quite dead enough for my taste."

"It wouldn't be too surprising if we encountered enemies in here," said Zeke conversationally as he stepped forward into the academy. "You'd be surprised at what can thrive in the dark."

Mira playfully poked Atton in the ribs with the hilt of her vibroblade and whispered, "I see dead people."

"Stop that," Atton said crossly but Brianna was certain that he was secretly pleased. There was something in the pilot's expression as he looked down at the petite huntress but he seemed to recognize that there was a task at hand that he needed to return his attention to and so he quickly turned away and followed Zeke into the hallway.

"Well then," Brianna heard Mira mutter under her breath and then the two women slipped into the academy too.

The interior of the structure was dark and damp. The smell of decay was a perfume compared to the rotting scent that pervaded the area. Atton eyed the corpses propped up against the walls with apprehension and then said, "Look. I see dead people too."

But Mira did not even flash the ghost of a smile. "There's something… breathing in here," she said flatly. "But not breathing. Does that make sense?"

"No," Atton answered but Brianna disagreed. There was something, like a beat, but less steady; like a pulse, but softer; like a hum, but more sporadic. There was a sound like a shudder, like the movement of a tree when the wind blows through its leaves, a sound that was both thrilling and unsettling. A sound like the song of a shadow. Perhaps Atton truly could not sense it… or perhaps he simply refused to acknowledge its presence, but Brianna could _feel _it. She could feel it and so could Mira. And so could Zeke; she could see it in his brown eyes. But he seemed more interested in Mira's sensing of it rather than the sound itself. "Can you feel anything else?" he asked intently.

She hesitated, glancing towards Atton, and then shook her head. "Just a… hollow feeling."

"Hollow feeling," Atton repeated. "Great. Can we get moving?"

Zeke shrugged as though none of this mattered after all but he was only posturing. He continued walking at the same steady pace down the halls of the academy. His companions followed more cautiously, jumping at shadows, until they entered the circular center room.

The Exile made a move towards the center of the room but Brianna cried out in warning. Everyone turned to stare at her and she blushed. "I thought… I thought I saw a bat."

But that was a lie. For a moment, Brianna had seen a man kneeling there, bare scalp decorated with faint blue tattoos like artistic veins. Darkness and suspicion had radiated from his crouched form like energy and the handmaiden had had an instinctive desire to keep Zeke away from whatever that man, that Sith long gone, had left behind.

But it was Mira who backed away from the center of the room and walked into the open doorway of another chamber. After a moment, she stuck her head back through the doorway and said, "It looks like there's some kind of computer in here."

"Computer?" repeated Atton, instantly intrigued, and followed her into the room. Brianna and Zeke quickly filed in behind them. It appeared as though they were in a library, complete with ancient tomes and the computer Mira had mentioned. Atton knelt in front of the neglected terminal and began fiddling with wires until the console flickered to life. "Pure Pazaak."

He rose to his feet and began typing into the computer. "Okay," said Atton as he read the screen. "It looks like the last use was… four hours ago by registered user 'Loanna Vash.' Is that who we're looking for?"

"That's exactly who we're looking for," said Zeke happily. "Can you track down where she accessed the computer system from?"

"Sure." Atton pressed a few more keys and then hit the side of the computer a few times. "Hmm… 'Training Room.' Looks like there are also a couple of camera feeds –what the!" He turned back to them, frustration with the outdated system evident. "Some kind of password is required."

"I'd like to take a look at the camera feeds, if you don't mind," said Zeke thoughtfully. "I'd like to know what happened here."

"Say no more," Atton replied. "You all head on up to the training room and I'll work on the console while you meet with the Jedi."

Was it Brianna's imagination or did Atton seem a little too willing to be left behind? She shook her head slightly as Zeke hesitated. "I don't want to leave anyone behind," he said. "This isn't exactly the safest place but…"

"I'll stay with him," Mira volunteered, "if that makes you feel any better."

Zeke nodded and then beckoned for Brianna to follow him out of the library and into the central room. As they moved in the direction Atton had indicated, Brianna continued to see shadows, echoes of what once had been here. In one corner, she thought she saw two figures in the garb of students kneeling together over a holocron; in another, a dark figure battling a man in Republic livery. At one moment, she thought she felt the presence of a man whose echo was more powerful than any of the others; his form was nearly tangible in the dim light. She couldn't see his face but his presence was like a beacon of light in the darkness. She shivered, the echo of light making everything else seem much darker. Seeing this, Zeke asked what the matter was, to which the handmaiden replied, "The Force has a strong connection to this place."

"You're right about that, but what makes you think so?"

"I cannot help but see what was once here. Students and prisoners, masters and guards. Visitors," Brianna shook her head as if to clear it of invading visions. "Those that were here left a lasting impression."

He nodded. "Korriban is rotten through and through. What was done here was evil and the planet cannot forget it. But why do you think that you're seeing all of this? Why here? Why you?"

"You said this place has a lasting connection to the Force," she was quick to remind him.

"Or perhaps… it is you who has the connection to the Force."

"I refuse to even consider that."

"But what if?"

"No," Brianna said and that seemed the end of the subject.

Zeke stopped walking and it took a moment for Brianna to turn and look back at him. "Have I done something to make you angry?" he demanded. "Because obviously I've done something wrong to make you act like this."

"I don't know what you're talking about," answered the handmaiden dismissively but Zeke cut her off.

"No. I've obviously done something that you deem to be 'wrong.' I'm not the kind of person who waits and wonders what it is and never finds out. I'd like to know what it is." Trying to keep his tone level, Zeke added, "I'd like to know what I have done to displease you, Handmaiden."

"You've made me feel uncomfortable." The Exile could not help but be taken aback by Brianna's answer. "I'm not… I'm not used to having someone, anyone, take such an interest in me, the last handmaiden. You've caught me off guard and I do not like it. I usually prefer to be left alone, to do as I please in privacy, and the rest of the crew members seem to understand that. Not you. You keep coming back, no matter how many times I tell you to leave. You always leave and then you come back. You would be my comrade, wouldn't you? More than that, you would be my friend."

He was quiet for a moment, holding his peace until he found the right thing to say in response to this. Finally, he spoke. "I would gladly be your friend, were you to give me the chance. But now isn't really the right time to speak of such things. We have a mission to complete and I'm not anxious to extend our stay on Korriban much longer. We can talk, but not here, not now. Later. I promise."

Brianna was relieved when Zeke moved forward, though she took care not to show it. She was not certain of her readiness to have that particular discussion with him. She followed the Exile up to the door to the training chamber and then silently observed as Zeke fiddled with the locking mechanism, holding a few security spikes between his teeth until he needed them. The door opened but Brianna soon wished it had not.

It must have been a "training room" for Sith interrogation, if one were to draw that hypothesis from the tables decorated by rusty manacles and the cages. Even more indicative was the body in the nearest cage –the body wearing the bloodstained robes of a Jedi.

As she averted her eyes from the corpse, the handmaiden chose to look at Zeke instead. She watched as his brown eyes took in the body, than expanded to look at the cage, Brianna, the tables, the room, and only then did he take in his position in all of this. When the shock finally registered in his face, Brianna stepped forward, "Zeke-"

"Don't," he told her in a quiet voice that was somehow more wounding than the loudest and most terrible scream. "Don't. Because I'm not sure that I could handle a lecture right now. I know what you're thinking and I'm telling you that what you suspect is true: this was Loanna Vash, master of the Jedi Council and a mentor of mine for many years."

He knelt by the door of the cage and used a miniature laser to cut through the rusty bars until there was enough space for him to reach his hand into the cage and pull the dead Jedi's hood aside. He studied the dead master's horrified expression for a few moments, with such care that it seemed as though he were to paint her likeness, and then he closed her eyes with the tips of his fingers. "Atris was a good Jedi but not the best human being. Loanna Vash was a good woman as well as a talented Jedi. It is a great sadness that the galaxy is left without her wisdom."

He stood and then a shadow crossed his face. "But Atton said that… Atton said that… he said that she had logged onto the computer only a few hours ago. She –she was alive only a few hours ago. She was alive this morning; she was alive… last night." It took a moment for the realization to register and then it seemed to Brianna as though he lost it. "The tomb," he whispered. "The tomb. Force, why did I have to go? Damn it, it was the tomb! If I had –if I had come here first, If I had been here last night… she'd still be alive. Damn it!"

Zeke turned to Brianna, demanding, "Why am I doing everything wrong? Why can't I get it right, just once, just once? If I had listened to Kreia… damn it, if I had just swallowed my blasted pride and had come here first… she'd be alive. Why is everything going wrong? I'm giving this mission everything I have; I understand how and why it is so important, but nothing seems to be working! Nothing goes right for me; why does everything I touch burn up and turn into ashes?"

Tentatively –because suddenly he wasn't the Exile anymore; he was just Zeke –Brianna stepped forward and placed her hands on his shoulders. "Maybe what you've done will turn out for the better," she told him gently. "We knew, we all knew, even Atris, that there was only a slim chance that any of the masters would have survived. We found one and even that was an accomplishment in itself. You said that there is such a thing as destiny. Maybe if you hadn't gone into that tomb last night, it would have been you dead in that cage."

"But who could have found her? Who besides us would have known where to look?"

Before the Handmaiden could reply, Zeke's comlink crackled to life and Atton's voice filled the room. "I'm sorry to tell you this, Karis, but your Jedi is dead. We picked up a recent camera feed and, well, it isn't pretty. You there?"

"I'm here," answered Zeke, tone expressionless. "We know. We came across her… her corpse. What got her?"

"Sorry to hear you found that. As to what got, her… difficult to say. A red lightsaber was thrown at her and the camera didn't pick up the attacker. But I've got good news too: apparently, the front doors jammed behind us. Well, they're open now. I vote in favor of a hasty exit."

"Atton," Brianna heard Mira say with a slight quaver in her voice. "I'm guessing Zeke knows this guy?"

There was a moment of silence and then Atton said. "Worse news: our half-dead buddy from Peragus followed us here. I pretty sure that we're right after Master Vash on his "to-kill" list."

"Where is he?" Zeke snapped into action. "What's he doing?"

"Central room," Mira came onto the comlink. "And he's just… waiting. He's been waiting for a while. I think he was the one I hear breathing. Get down here, Karis. We can't take him on by ourselves and it's only a matter of time before he realizes we're here."

Zeke shut off his comlink, face grim. Brianna could not help but be confused. "Who's waiting for us? What's going on?"

"There's a Sith out there, waiting for us."

"Sith!" she repeated with alarm. "You told me that there were no Sith left here, only ruins and ashes."

"I can't account for Sith lords dropping out of the sky!"

"'Dropping out of the sky'… has he been following us and you didn't tell me?"

He winced. "I thought we lost him at Nar Shaddaa. We have to go and face him. Stay close and be careful. He won't be like anything you've faced before."

With that, he started down the hallway and Brianna had no choice but to follow him. She listened and the sound that answered her was one built on pain and suffering, a great shudder of movement, a cold wind. The handmaiden was not sure of how anyone could listen for something like pain or the cold and hear it, but hear it she did. As they moved towards the center chamber, in her mind's eye she saw the sort of Sith Atris had once described to her: chalky white skin, sickeningly yellow eyes, black robes, and a confident smirk. What Brianna saw when she and Zeke entered the room was very different than the visions of Sith Atris had put in her mind.

The handmaiden had expected an old being but she had not anticipated a man who seemed to be crumbling to dust before her very eyes. He was bare from the waist up, displaying mottled skin that was cracked and broken like an old dried up riverbed or smashed earthenware. His limbs seemed to moan like branches in the wind as he rose from his kneeling position and turned to face Brianna and Zeke. His remaining eye gleamed with excitement but his tone was disappointed and somehow wistful as he looked between the handmaiden and the Exile. "Only two? I was sure there were more of you when you entered this place."

As if in response, the door to the library slid open and Atton and Mira stepped forward. The Sith lord's head swiveled in order to look at them. Atton raised an eyebrow at Zeke and commented, "Took you long enough."

Baring his teeth in a feral grin, eyes never leaving the Sith Lord, Zeke replied, "Wouldn't miss it for the world."

Brianna blinked once as she looked between Atton and the Sith Lord and she saw something else. It was darker and there was a red glow in the air. She saw Atton and the Sith facing each other in the same way they faced each other now and Brianna knew that, sometime in the future, they would face each other again, bathed in red light, and one of them would not walk away from that battle. And then she blinked twice and the Sith Lord was upon them all.

He attacked Zeke first –who would not when the Exile was obviously the most powerful of the four companions? –and Zeke's lightsaber was out in a heartbeat, rising to meet the red blade with the smoothness of a wave. Then Atton, Brianna, and Mira fell into the fray as well. _His attacks are almost sloppy, _thought Brianna of the Sith Lord. _It is almost as if he is more interested in causing pain than in moving in for the direct kill. Jedi are merciful, even when they aim to kill. This is different._

He enjoyed causing pain; he reveled in it. He swung his weapon out in a wide arc and Atton leapt back, yelping as the edge of the red saber caught the sleeve of his shirt, singing the material and burning his arm. The Sith Lord laughed. Zeke attempted to drive a blow towards his enemy's shoulder but was brushed aside by the Sith's command of the Force. Mira yelled for everyone to get back as she fired a rocket but it did little damage. The Handmaiden tried to smack her quarterstaff against the back of his knees and cripple him for a moment but even her best effort yielded little result.

_We're losing, _Brianna realized but did not want to believe it. _There are four of us and one of him and we're losing. How can this be?_

Brianna didn't want to believe it but it was the truth. There was Mira, being shoved back against the wall. There was Atton, being knocked to the ground. And there was Zeke, fighting valiantly, so valiantly, and losing.

Losing ground, losing energy, they were all losing. Losing strength, losing faith, just… losing. Their backs were up against the wall and, no matter how many worried glances Brianna threw at him, Zeke would not retreat. Brianna only understood why when the Sith Lord said in a voice like gravel, "Do you want to know how I killed your Jedi friend?"

Zeke leapt forward and tried to plant a blow on the Sith's neck but the Exile was knocked aside like a little boy. "I starved her first. I sealed her away from the rest of the world, cut off her supply of food, water, vitality. I followed her through the halls of this Academy she chose to be her refuge. She knew I was hunting her but, like a caged animal, she did nothing, only spent her time in meditation and study. How I wanted to break her! I wanted to break her, but I had to let her live, knowing that you might feel her death through the Force and not come here. When you landed on Korriban, I began to lure her into the cage. When I saw you approaching the Academy, I did what I had been longing to do for days: I reached out and snapped her neck.

"It was not the death I wanted her to have," the Sith continued. "I wanted her to last longer. I wanted her to bask in her pain. I wanted to feel her life in my fingers, I wanted to squeeze the vitality out of her. I wanted to break her. The beauty is always in the breaking."

Out of the corner of her eye, Brianna thought she saw Atton wince. Zeke was furious, more furious than the handmaiden had ever seen him before. He was ready to do everything in his power to put an end to that Sith's miserable existence. The enemy's lips curled into a satisfied sneer. But something made Zeke stop. He closed his eyes as though listening and then said, "You died a long time ago, didn't you Sion?"

Sion –for that was the Sith's name it seemed –paused for the slightest of moments but that was enough time for Zeke, Atton, Mira, and Brianna to turn an run. As they fled into the Valley of the Dark Lords, the Academy doors closed behind them again but, by some instinct, they didn't stop running until they had made it up the landing ramp of the _Ebon Hawk _and into the ship. All four collapsed on the floor, breathing heavily.

Bao-Dur stuck his head out of the garage and looked down at the four exhausted companions. He hurried towards Zeke and tried to help the Exile to his feet. "What happened?" Where is Master Vash? Did something go wrong, general?"

"Was that," said Atton from where he lay face down on the metal floor, "Kreia's ex or something? Is that why he's so intent on stalking us? Because, if so, I want her off of the ship."

Mira had crumbled onto the floor beside him, her face close to his, and she smiled at him. "You'd want her off of the ship anyways."

Atton turned his head so that he faced her. "Very true."

The Exile glanced towards where Brianna sat slumped against the wall and then told Bao-Dur, "We ran into a Sith Lord. He had killed Master Vash. He –he told me how he did it." Zeke swallowed. "I tried to hate him. For a moment, I really did hate him. He was trying to kill me, after all; I had every reason to hate him. But I… couldn't."

"What?" said Atton, getting to his knees. "Are you seriously saying that even though that guy had every intention of killing us, you _didn't_ hate him?"

"I told you that I tried to," replied Zeke defensively. "I couldn't. The amount of despair and anger and pain radiating from a single creature was… pitiful. I pitied him. He tried to kill me and I pitied him."

Atton was confused, or seemed to be so. "But… he killed Jedi. He killed someone you knew and respected. How could you not hate him?"

"I think there are more powerful emotions than hate in this galaxy," said Bao-Dur musingly. "I take it we're done here? Time to set course for Onderon? I'll fire up the engine then, general."

"Excuse me?" Atton staggered to his feet. "I'm the pilot here and Zeke said we were stopping by Nar Shaddaa first."

"I'll go and help you with that," said Mira, following Atton to the cockpit.

Bao-Dur nodded to Brianna and Zeke before exiting. The Exile then looked to the handmaiden and extended a hand in order to help her off of the floor. "Are you alright? You took a few hard knocks back there."

Taking his hand and allowing him to pull her to her feet, she said, "You called that Sith Lord by a name. What was it?"

"His name is 'Sion,' or that is the name that Kreia knows him by. Funny, isn't it, how knowing something's name makes it seem less intimidating and frightening?" He shot a private smile at Brianna. "Kind of like you, handmaiden."

Insulted and ashamed all at once, Brianna flinched and turned to go. "Knowing someone's name gives you power over them," she murmured as she left.

Zeke may have heard the handmaiden's departing words or they may have been smothered under the roar of the engine. What mattered was that Brianna had said them and that, even then, she was beginning to doubt them.

…

_Mistress, _was the first word Brianna typed into the datapad.

She tapped her fingers against the screen, wondering how best to begin her report to Atris. The Jedi Historian on Telos needed to be informed of recent developments, especially of the discovery of Loanna Vash's corpse and the appearance of the Sith Lord Sion. Of course Atris needed to be made aware of these events! Brianna didn't understand why she was finding it so difficult to compose the message. Finally, she was able to put something together. It was a simple update that the handmaiden then translated into code.

She looked down at the message on the datapad and added, _Strange things have been happening to me I keep seeing things that I should not be seeing. _She glanced over it, translated it into code, and then deleted the sentences.

_When will you send for me to return? _Went the way of the first

The third and perhaps the most honest was: _I am confused and sometimes frightened by what is happening around me. _She didn't even bother to translate that one before deleting it.

Brianna pocketed the datapad without signing her name before leaving the cargo hold and walking into the cockpit. She passed the infirmary and smiled to see Mira attending to the burn on Atton's arm. She smiled at Bao-Dur and T3 as they passed her in the hallway and was even able to muster a small nod for Visas who seemed surprised at the acknowledgement. She paused at the cockpit but looked away when she saw Zeke asleep in the navigator's chair.

He had said that there would be a right time for them to continue their discussion from the hallway in the Academy; Brianna just didn't know when that right time was. She looked into the cockpit again and wondered, _Do I dare? _

She stepped away, the datapad in her pocket with the message to Atris feeling very heavy. She would send it when they reached Nar Shaddaa, when she could establish a connection through the _Hawk_'s communication system while Zeke was out on the moon's surface. Or maybe she wouldn't. Brianna played with the notion of not sending the message but, in the end, did not make a decision.

…

A/N: Whew! That was a long one. I covered most of Korriban (since it was my favorite planet and I thought there could be so much potential for Brianna and Zeke there). The quotation at the beginning is from a poem by T.S. Elliot which is my favorite poem of all time. Check it out. I'm planning to update and rewrite _Identity _very soon (since it is totally worthy of cringing over). -EK 


	6. Stranger

Stranger

By Elle Kitty

_And I have known the eyes already, known them all-_

_The eyes that fix you in a formulated phrase,_

_And when I am formulated, sprawling on a pin,_

_When I am pinned and wriggling on the wall,_

_Then how should I begin_

_To spit out all the butt-ends of my days and ways?_

_And how should I presume?_

_The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufock_

_T.S. Elliot_

"So… yeah."

Though Atton Rand was thousands of miles away, far away, on the moon of Dxun, Brianna could deduce that he was less than thrilled to be working on repairing the _Ebon Hawk _while Zeke, Brianna, and Mandalore searched Onderon for the Jedi Master Kavar. Repairs were necessary; the ship was hardly space worthy after having been shot out of thin air by some kind of defense system. But, while Atton had worked on the ship alongside Bao-Dur, Zeke had run into some old… enemies? Friends? Brianna wasn't sure. But what she did know was that the Mandalorians on Dxun had been more than happy to ferry Zeke down to Onderon, provided that the Exile complete a few errands for them. That being done, Zeke and Brianna found themselves landing in Iziz's spaceport, courtesy of Mandalore and his shuttle.

"You won't be sitting around for that long once the repairs are complete," Zeke tried to reassure the pilot whom Brianna realized was becoming his best friend. "And it's not like you won't have company. You've got Visas and Kreia…"

"Sure, sure," Atton grumbled. "The Sith assassin and the Dark Side witch. That'll be loads of fun. By the time you get back, Kreia will have used her powers to convince me that my name actually is 'Fool.'"

"…T3 and HK…"

"Are you trying to depress me?"

"…Bao-Dur and Mira."

"Oh, Mira," repeated Atton glumly and that was when Brianna realized the root of why Atton was so apprehensive about staying on Dxun.

Mira the bounty hunter had become Mira the Jedi. It seemed as though, having recognized Mira's Force potential on Korriban, Zeke had decided to take her back to Nar Shaddaa and show her how to "listen" to the Force, to prove that, no matter what she said, it would always be there, listening in return. When Mira returned from that excursion, something had changed in her and, before you knew it, she became a Jedi Consular and Zeke's new informal apprentice.

Atton did not like that. He did not like it one bit and neither did Brianna for that matter. She did not like that Zeke had chosen a "favorite" (or at least that was the way the Handmaiden saw this new relationship of Master and Apprentice) and she did not like the way Zeke now listened to Mira's advice more than he did Brianna's. But Atton's apprehension seemed to run deeper than just simple resentment. In the week the _Ebon Hawk's _crew had spent on Onderon's moon, the pilot had taken to avoiding Mira in a similar way to how Brianna once avoided Zeke. Mira had not understood why.

"Look," the hunter-turned-Jedi had said to Brianna the night before Zeke left for Iziz, "I knew he liked me. Bao-Dur knew he liked me. Anyone this side of the galaxy knew he liked me. You knew he liked me."

"Yes," Brianna had replied as she packed a small bag of supplies, "I knew he liked you."

"Of course you did. Everyone did. Even Visas knew and she's blind. Now, he won't even look at me." Mira had stopped pacing around the room and turned and looked at Brianna with a completely serious expression. "D'you think he's on spice?"

"No," Brianna had answered firmly but Mira had still been unconvinced.

"Does he think that this Jedi thing means that I'm now suddenly involved with Zeke?" she then had demanded. "Because I'm not!"

"No," Brianna had repeated even though that was what the Handmaiden herself had believed.

"Then what is wrong with him?" The huntress had collapsed onto her bunk. "Men…"

"I thought that you knew all about men. I thought you knew all about stunning them and tying them up and then starving them until they answered all of your questions."

"Now there's an idea," Mira had smiled with satisfaction.

Now looking back on that conversation, Brianna could understand why Atton was so worried. However, the Exile seemed to be unaware of all of this angst taking place back on Dxun. Zeke smiled, said, "Alright Atton. We'll contact you again when we find Dhagon Gent and Master Kava –you know who we're talking about. Karis out."

Zeke shut off his comlink and then turned to glance back at Mandalore. "So, where is Dhagon Gent?"

In a bemused sort of tone, the Mandalorian said, "I can show you where he lives; I can't speak for his exact whereabouts at this particular moment in time. Nor can I promise his availability. In fact, I can't exactly promise you anything."

"So you can't promise that he'll arrange a meeting between Zeke and the Jedi Master?" replied Brianna. "Is that what you're trying to tell us?"

"Dhagon is a slippery man; that's why he has managed to stay alive so long. He's got the political connections you need but Onderon is in a sticky situation, as I'm sure you can see. The political connections he has are the kind that can only be used at the right times, if you catch my drift. Or Dhagon may just not feel like helping you. I can't speak for him."

"You could have told us this before you promised a meeting with-"

"You're in Iziz, sister. From what I understand, that's all you were trying to do when you first flew into the system. I got you this far, didn't I?"

"He got us this far, Handmaiden." This time it was Zeke who spoke with a reproachful tone. He shot her a meaningful glance. "We're in Iziz; we'll make the best of what we've got. Dhagon Gent is one lead; if that doesn't work out, we can find another. But it's only a matter of time before whoever tried to shoot us down realizes that we're in the capital. Let's get moving."

And so they began to walk down the streets of Iziz. Usually Brianna's eyes were drawn to the action taking place around her but today her blue-gray gaze was focused on the Exile. She had once watched him with ready accusations waiting on her tongue, watched for some taint of the Dark Side, but now she watched him for what he appeared to be rather than what Brianna knew he might be under his exterior appearance and actions.

He was a man; that was an indisputable fact. He was a handsome man, another fact that Brianna was finding to be indisputable. He looked like a man who ought to walk without fear, who should walk as though he could have anything he wanted, but Zeke Karis walked like a man awaiting a tsunami. There was something both intriguing and pitiful about the way he walked along the streets of Iziz.

And then he turned and looked towards her. "You're looking at me," Brianna said aloud. "Why are you looking at me?" she asked without thinking.

Zeke raised his eyebrows. "You were looking at me first," he commented. "It would have been rude to have just ignored you. What were you looking at?"

"I was observing the way you walked," Brianna's honesty surprised even her. "There is something about it. I don't know. Something is… there."

"They say you can tell a lot about someone by the way they walk."

"Then what do you see in me?"

"I see someone trying to escape a shadow." His response made Brianna glance up at the sunny sky in surprise. He continued. "I see someone who is used to following a taller someone and is now coming out into her own but is still flinching away from her new identity. I see someone who walks a little more quickly than necessary as though she is afraid of being left behind." His brown eyes met hers for a moment. "You shouldn't be afraid of being left behind, Handmaiden. I don't think that will ultimately be your fate."

He quickly bowed his head and picked up his pace as though embarrassed. Brianna had to hurry to catch up. "It's a… beautiful day, isn't it? The… blue of the sky is lovely and the white of the clouds against it… the sky was always gray in the polar region."

Glancing up at the sky, Zeke said, "It is a nice day but I wouldn't call it 'beautiful.' Not with you standing here."

Behind them, Mandalore snorted so loudly it was audible through his helmet but Brianna's face colored in response to Zeke's comment. Ducking his head slightly again, the Exile added, "You have a nice… smile. You should smile more often."

He rubbed his neck and did not say anything further but the Handmaiden paused, gloved hand lightly touching her lips. She had the strangest sensation of a pleasant shock, as though she had not realized that she _could _smile until Zeke had commented on it. She shook her head slightly in some sort of amused surprise at what she perceived to be her "silliness" and then continued to follow Zeke through the streets of Iziz.

.:Western Square, Merchants' Quarter, Dhagon Gent's Residence:.

Zeke kicked over an empty wooden crate before sitting down and glaring at Mandalore. "Is Dhagon Gent 'slippery' enough to kill an officer and then get himself arrested?"

Mandalore was meanwhile rooting through Dhagon's refrigerator. "I know Dhagon personally," he threw over his shoulder. "He's the worst doctor I've ever met but I can't see him deliberately killing anybody." He inspected a container of food that appeared dangerous. "The worst thing he's probably ever done is leave this in here since the fall of Malak."

Brianna folded her arms and glanced about, looking for a remotely clean area where she could see herself sitting down. "Isn't this a little… unsanitary for a doctor's residence?"

Ignoring her, Mandalore said, "I think we need to look into this. I've got a feeling that this is some kind of venue for someone or another to discredit Dhagon."

"Let's see what we can do," replied Zeke as he got up and stepped back out into the sunlight.

Brianna and Mandalore followed him as he walked along the streets and asked for directions to the cantina where the alleged murder had taken place. As they walked down the streets, they passed a few men sitting on the side of the road. Eyes glazed over with drink, they waved Brianna over, calling out, "You're going to wrong way, beautiful."

The Handmaiden gritted her teeth but said nothing. But as they turned the corner, a similar thing happened. A dark haired woman winked at the Exile and leaned forward, displaying her low cut dress to its best advantage. "Where are you going?"

"Is everyone in this blasted town drunk?" Brianna finally exploded.

Mandalore made a noise of amusement but Zeke said, "They're in a rough time and there isn't much to do here besides drink."

Brianna nodded mutely and then held her tongue until they reached the entrance to the cantina. As the doors slid open, Mandalore commented, "Looks like they got sensors installed on the doors. That's new."

"It's a shame that the people here don't have censors installed on their mouths!" Brianna snapped and this time Zeke did not bother to hide his amusement.

.:Dhagon Gent's Residence, Several Hours Later:.

Brianna heard Zeke's approach even before he knew he was walking towards her. The Handmaiden was perched on the top step of the stairs leading up to Dhagon's house looking out onto the Western Square. "It gets colder at night than you would expect in a desert," she said as he came closer.

"Are you cold?"

"After living on an ice cap? No. Not really. Just a little… taken aback." She looked up at him. "Did you know my mother? You were both generals in the Mandalorian Wars; surely…"

"Not that I know of," he admitted. "There were many Jedi, more than you would expect. Revan drew great numbers to her cause, greater than the masters had expected. Perhaps if they had realized that so many Jedi would turn out and volunteer themselves as generals, perhaps then they themselves would have sponsored the war. But we'll never know."

"What was it like to follow Revan?"

"It was like my hands were bound. I could not do one thing and I could not do the other. I wanted to do something to help the war effort but I did not want to disobey the masters' commands. But it seemed that the easier choice was to go to war. I didn't want to stand before Revan and tell her that what I thought she was doing was the wrong thing, because I didn't believe that. I didn't want to shut the door on Atris or Master Vrook and therefore tell them that what they said was coldblooded and the true Jedi would help those in need. But I wanted a war. I wanted a venue in which I could prove myself. But the truth is that I didn't want to disappoint Revan. I was… I was almost afraid that, if Revan and Malak became the heroes we knew they would be should they succeed, they would look at me and see the coward. But by following them, I was the true coward. I was a coward. I went to war."

"To fight in battle is not cowardly," Mandalore had stepped outside and joined them. "To die in battle is noble. The Mandalorians respect you for what you did to ensure victory for your side, even if the cost was high."

"But what if the cost was so much more than I could pay?" the Exile murmured to himself. "I didn't go to war to find glory; I went to war to make peace. If it had been unnecessary, I would not have gone."

"But now you sound like a Revanchist again," said Mandalore with a note of disgust in his tone. "But you say that you are not a Revanchist. There's where you were coward: you could not take a stand."

Zeke glared at the Mandalorian until he left. When Mandalore did depart, Zeke settled back onto the step with a sigh. "Do you think this will ever end?" he asked Brianna as he looked up at the night sky.

"What will?"

"This… running and searching and sometimes finding what we're looking for and sometimes not finding anything at all or sometimes finding a dead body in a cage instead of the person you once knew and respected. D'you we'll ever find an end to it?"

"You've been speaking to Mira, haven't you?"

"Well, yes," Zeke smiled crookedly. "It's usually what she talks about."

Brianna looked up at the night sky too. "How did you do it?"

"Do what?"

"Make her into a Jedi."

"Is this Atris who wants to know or the Handmaiden?"

"The Handmaiden of course."

"Really? Because I can never be sure."

"Me," said Brianna with an exasperated sigh now that she realized he was teasing her.

After a long moment's thought, Zeke answered. "I showed her what she had been looking for. That's all. I showed her life. I took her to a place on Nar Shaddaa and I helped her listen to its life. That's all."

"That's all? You make it sound as though it requires little to no effort to make someone into a Jedi."

"Well, that depends on the person and how willing they are to become a Jedi and embrace what they know is inside of them. To put it more simply, they have to be open to suggestion." He smiled at her again.

Brianna glanced away and then looked back at him again. "Why are you doing this?"

"Doing what?"

"Telling me everything. Taking me everywhere" She rose and turned as though to go back into the house but then turned back. "You shouldn't, you know. You should not be taking me to all of these places and telling me about the things you do. You should of done what Atton said from Day One and looked me in the cargo hold, confined me to the ship. If you wanted to be less extreme, you could've at least kept me from being privy to all of your secrets!"

"What do you mean?" Zeke asked.

"As if you do not know! Atton was right. I'm," she hesitated and for a moment wondered why she was even bothering, "I'm Atris's spy. I've –I've been Atris's spy from the moment I stepped onto your ship and everyone has been so right not to trust me. But now they are trusting me and you're trusting me and I don't know what to do."

Zeke watched her for a moment and then laughed softly. "Handmaiden, I've known from the moment you stepped on board this ship that you were Atris's agent. I didn't care. I've told Atton and Kreia that I don't care. Besides, T3 has been keeping track of all of the messages sent through the _Hawk_'s comm. System and there have been a few unnecessary signals sent to Telos." He got up too. "I know. I've decided to trust you, no matter what."

"I was Atris's spy. I'm –I'm not anymore. I'm…" Brianna paused, uncertain of how to phrase the way she was feeling. "I've seen you do everything that Atris said you would not do. You don't just seek for your own gratification; you go out of your way to help people. All through Nar Shaddaa, I could not believe what I was seeing. She was so… wrong about you. Everything she said was misconstrued or a lie. She told me that you hungered for battle; you avoid violent confrontation. She said that you cared nothing for those around you so long as they served you; you care about us, you ask us questions, you want to make sure that we are alright. She swore… she swore that you carried no regret over Malachor. That most of all is untrue; you're haunted. I can see it in the way you walk. You want to go back. It is as though every step you take forward is a step you wish you could take backward.

"Atris was so wrong about you. And if she is wrong about all of those things, surely she must be wrong about the dark taint she believes lies within you. And I know that sometimes you think that that taint is within you as well, but I tell you that it is not. You're a good Jedi, more than that, you're a good person. You've shown me goodness; therefore you must be good. I don't care what Atris says anymore; you are not what she told me you would be. It's as though she claimed she knew you but you were a stranger to her all along. I thought I knew you from what she told me of you but you're a stranger to me too. And now, I feel as though I am a stranger to myself."

"You're not a stranger to yourself," Zeke told her. "You've seen what you were, you've perceived what you could have been, you know what you are, and you're coming into what you will be. You just need to be certain that what you plan to be is what you want to be."

Brianna laughed a little uncertainly. "I feel as though I am pinned under a microscope," she said. "You seem to know so many things about me, some things that I may not know myself. You're pinned under a microscope too; even more people are studying you more than you study me. How do you go about your life when everyone is there, waiting for your next move."

"I could say that I don't think about it at all, that I just go about doing as I please, but that would be a lie. It's like skating on melting ice when you know you're about to slip under and be lost. I try not to think on it too much, but when I don't think about it, that's when I slip under. And I slip under more than I think anyone realizes. Except for maybe Kreia. And Visas."

"Is that why you keep her by you?" she wanted to know. "Because she knows what it's like to… slip under?"

"Partially," the Exile replied, smiling a little at Brianna's obstinacy whenever he mentioned the Miraluka. "And partially because she felt me through the Force. Of all of the people on my ship, at the time she seemed to possess the closest connection to the Force. Being near someone who possessed that kind of connection… to an Exile, it's almost intoxicating."

"But she's a Sith…"

"I'm not sure there's much of a difference between Jedi and Sith anymore."

"That's a lie!" Brianna surprised Zeke by exclaiming. "You know that's not true. There is a difference, a tangible difference. You've been to a Jedi Academy before, haven't you? It was different than Korriban, wasn't it? You know there's a difference and that's why you're afraid to take a side."

Caught off guard, Zeke said, "Maybe I don't take a side because I'm not sure of what I am!"

"Well, if I were Force sensitive, I know what I would be!"

"Well, what if you were Force sensitive? What would you do then?" Brianna fell silent as Zeke said this. "You said that you're no longer tied to Atris. You know that you have that aptitude for the Force. You saw the Force on Korriban. You looked for it and you found it. What I've been trying to understand is why you haven't done anything about it."

"If I were to become a Jedi, I would have to change."

"Maybe it would be a change for the better."

"I don't know," said Brianna finally. "That's an honest answer even if it isn't a real answer. I don't know. I would have to give up everything I am."

"You wouldn't have to give up your mother."

"I would. In the eyes of the Jedi, what she did, having me, was wrong. I'd have to agree with that. I'm not sure that I can. I don't know, Zeke. I don't know you and I don't know what I want and I don't know myself all at once. So much has changed and I do not know if it is for the better. Being a Jedi, one would have to give so many things up. Anger, and fear, and hatred, and… love."

"Only if one chooses to give them up," said Zeke and then he leaned down as though he would like to kiss her.

From behind them, Mandalore cleared his throat. "Well…" he said. "I'm not sure what time visiting hours start at the holding facility but I would recommend sleeping."

"Good idea," said Zeke before getting up and going back into the house, leaving Brianna sitting on the steps, staring at the moon.

A/N: Wow, that one was short. Well, I figured that since "Ashes" was so long, I'd make this one a tad shorter. Please review!


	7. Betrayal

Betrayal

By Elle Kitty

It was raining on Dantooine, raining hard, and droplets of water clung to the Echani Handmaiden's hair, skin, and clothing. The rain had taken her by surprise; she had heard Mandalore's description of the great plains of Dantooine, somewhere he might like to retire to in order to find some peace, and Brianna had envisioned bright blue skies and white clouds, rays of sunshine that would sweep across the golden grasses and turn her hair a paler white and her skin a darker shade. She had pictured warmth; her vision had been closer to Onderon than to Dxun. And yet they had arrived to find rain pounding down like a battle march on the settlement of Khoonda.

She tried to brush away the water that lingered on her forehead but doing so would run the risk of upsetting the crate of supplies that she was carrying through the hallways of _Ebon Hawk_. In front of her, Atton led the way into the cargo hold and, placing his box into a corner, sat down and said, "Well, I guess it's just you and me now, handmaiden."

"What do you mean?" asked Brianna cautiously as she deposited her crate onto the floor as well. Atton had never done this before; the few times he had ever come into the cargo hold –_her_ cargo hold, she had begun to think of it –had been to stand in the doorway and mock her. But here he was, sitting down and looking languorously up at her, almost as though he wished to make friends. "Everyone's on the ship –well, everyone but Zeke that is. But you know he's only out in Khoonda –though it's been a while; it can't possibly take this long to speak to the administrator and get permission to go into the ruins!"

"Don't get your knickers into a twist, handmaiden," the pilot said sweetly. "It's only Dantooine; what kind of threat could possibly be here? Besides, that's not what I wanted to talk to you about. Haven't you noticed that, now that Bao-Dur had given up his testy mechanic ways and all, we're the only hold-outs? You and I are the resistance, the outsiders. We've got to stick together before the overwhelming forces overcome us."

"The exile is hardly amassing an army against you, Atton," replied Brianna in a tone that she meant to be reasonable but instead came out a little too sharp. "And I do not understand why you take such offense at the choices of others, and you do take offense, Atton. Don't deny it. And here you're angry with Zeke rather than with the people who made their choices and were perfectly entitled to do so."

"I'm pretty sure that he didn't exactly make them feel as though they were 'entitled to make their own choices.'"

"What do you mean by that?"

He stared at her for a moment in disbelief and then said, "You've hung around here long enough to pick up on what he does, haven't you? Haven't you seen the way he influences people? D'you honestly think that just because he calls us his friends, we're suddenly immune to his infinite powers of persuasion?"

"And even if we are not," Brianna countered, "does it really matter anymore? We're all here for the same reasons and, even if Zeke's presence is affecting us, he has good intentions."

"Are you sure that we're all here for the same reasons? Even if his intentions are good, does that mean that we should be giving up all of our choices to him?" Atton thumbed through his Pazaak cards as he said this but his expression was grim. "Besides, good intentions can go awry."

"Even the good intentions of a Jedi such as Zeke?"

"Especially the good intentions of a Jedi." His tone was lofty. "Haven't you noticed that it seems as though most Jedi we've met are a little… two-faced? Take Atris for example: she sits in her little tower of ice and waits for the Sith to reveal themselves. She says that she's the Jedi who is fighting the real war against the Sith –but she sends Zeke out to do all of the leg work. I'll bet she didn't tell Karis the half of what's going on and Kreia is just the same. The Jedi are teachers… but not when it comes to teaching the truth."

Brianna found that she did not have anything to say to this so she only pushed a plasteel cylinder to the side and sat down upon the metal floor. The cargo hold was _her _territory after all and even if Atton insisted on lingering and complaining to her, Brianna was going to make sure that _she_ was comfortable.

When Atton realized that she wasn't going to yell at him and make him leave, he opened his mouth to say something further. He then promptly closed it when Mira passed by the open doorway. She paused when she saw Brianna but scowled when she saw Atton and took a moment to glare at the pilot before moving on. He watched her go before turning back to the handmaiden with such a wounded expression that Brianna had to bite her lip to keep from smiling.

"You might as well laugh," he said to the Echani sourly. "Another trip halfway across the galaxy from Dxun to Dantooine and she's said nothing to me. Nothing."

"It isn't as though you have been very conversational these past few days." For, in truth, Atton had mostly kept to himself.

"Alright, point taken. But still-"

"Haven't you been ignoring her, not the other way around?"

"She's been talking to you, hasn't she?" When Brianna did not answer, Atton laughed glumly. "It's you women. You always flock together to attack the poor innocent man like some pack of harpies."

"You're hardly innocent, Atton. And when a man wrongs another of my gender, I cannot help but want to retaliate. But, truly, your folly is hardly any concern of mine –although it could affect your piloting."

"So that is all you care about! The success of the mission."

"Statement: Oh, goody: More confrontation."

Before the handmaiden could respond, Bao-Dur and HK-47 had entered the cargo hold. The Iridonian glanced at the confrontation expressions sported by both Atton and Brianna and said wryly, "Mira said that you seemed to be actually getting along… but now I see that would be too good to be true."

"Did Mira… say anything about me?" asked Atton cautiously as he got to his feet.

"Statement: Oh yes, unreliable meatbag. She suggested that you do something to yourself –but I dismissed the notion as being anatomically impossible."

Bao-Dur winced. "Right."

"Well… Is Zeke going to come back from Khoonda any time soon or is he planning to stay the night there?" said the pilot crossly, obviously a little desperate to change the subject.

"It's hardly noon," said Bao-Dur reprovingly, "and the general is only there to get Administrator Adare's permission to enter the enclave ruins and I'm only here, Atton, to tell you that the general wants us to meet him in the admin building."

"Why?" Atton so suspiciously that Brianna sighed with exasperation.

"Why d'you think? The general wants us to come with him to the Jedi enclave. He said that there's probably going to be a lot of locked doors and such and T3 was due for an upgrade."

"Statement: All of the upgrades in the galaxy could not bring that tin bucket up to par."

"The little guy's supposed to be in sleep mode for the rest of the day," continued Bao-Dur, pointedly ignoring HK. "I guess that means that it's you and me, Atton."

"Great," he grumbled. "That's just great. Might I inquire as to how the rain is doing?"

"Harder than ever and it doesn't look like it has any intention of lightening up any time soon. Maybe it'll feel sorry for us and let up."

"Great. Well, don't mind me but I'm going to see if I can locate an extra slicker. Maybe two extra slickers, one for me and… another for me." He headed to the door, adding, "And Zeke really is going senile if he's got it in his permacrete skull that he can control the wind and the rain. And the mud. Don't forget the mud. Now I know I put that slicker somewhere…"

As he exited, Brianna and Bao-Dur heard Mira call out, "Why don't you just stick your head into a garbage bag, Rand?"

Bao-Dur sighed and shook his head. "If they keep this up, they'll tear the ship apart between the two of them. But, hopefully, now that we've settled down for the moment, things will… also settle down."

"Dejected statement: Settling down in this Iridonian's vocabulary seems to mean… less confrontation."

"Hopefully less confrontation," said Brianna fervently. "Is Zeke really going to trek out to the enclave with all of the wind and the rain?"

"The general will do as the general does," he answered noncommittally with a shrug. "Zeke will probably do as he wants; I wouldn't expect anything else from him. Besides, now is as good a time as any other. There's no indication that the rain is going to stop." He hesitated before going on. "You know, there was a time when you'd have protested over Zeke going out into unfavorable conditions."

"I think that time has passed," responded the handmaiden as she got to her feet before adding with a smile. "I am weary of this world and weary of attempting to stand in Zeke's way but you probably should go down to the Admin building before the Exile decides to take off on his own. Hopefully, Atton has recovered from the… shock."

"Hopefully," echoed Bao-Dur as he departed.

.:Seven Standard Hours Later:.

It was raining; drops of water were pattering against the ship's hull but the sound of the storm was nothing compared to the racket Mira made when armed with pots and pans. "I hate men," the huntress muttered as she threw a spatula against the skillet. Brianna placed a steak onto the pan and Mira flipped it. "I hate outdated cooking systems and I hate men."

"You don't hate all men," Visas rejoined as she stealthily stepped into the main hold.

"Out of my kitchen," Mira called out from the corner of the room that amounted to the "kitchen." She nodded to Brianna as the handmaiden deposited another chunk of meat onto the skillet. "I am queen of the pots and pans and I do not wish to hear the opinions of my subjects!" she said to Visas. However, when the Miraluka exited once more, Mira turned to Brianna and said, "She has a point. I don't hate all men, just men that are morons."

"Oh?" said the handmaiden, only half-listening to Mira's torrent.

"I just hate men who are morons," she repeated and then shook her head dejectedly. "Which seems to amount to every man in the galaxy now that I think about it. I tried to talk to him, you know. He just stood there. It's so strange; when it's good, it's great… but when it's bad, it's awful. Did I do something wrong? I remember when I first saw… never mind. No one gets second chances. He's a moron. I'm a moron. Hey, if things just amounted to that, we'd be perfect for each other, wouldn't we? But he's a moron. All men are morons but, next time… there won't be a next time."

Brianna checked to make sure that Visas had truly left the kitchen and then said to Mira in a low voice, "You don't think that Zeke is a moron, do you?"

"I –no. He's not a moron, but he isn't like any other man. Atton is any other man; Zeke is something different. Hey, they're on completely different ends of the alphabet." Mira chuckled slightly as she flipped the steak again. "But I tried to talk to him about the way Atton had been acting and do you know what he said? He told me to be "the bigger person" and approach Atton first. Can you believe that?"

"Not really," she said absentmindedly as she put another steak onto the pan. "I would have thought it apparent that, between the two of you, Atton is obviously the taller person."

Mira shot Brianna a scathing look and, seeing that the handmaiden was obviously not paying any attention, said, "And then I asked him if the two of you had hooked up a power coupling."

"What!" exclaimed the handmaiden, broken out of her reverie, as her face turned bright red.

Laughing rather meanly, the huntress replied, "That's what he said too and then, when I attempted to elaborate, he turned and walked away. Can you believe it?"

"Certainly," said Brianna and, as if to validate her statement, promptly turned away from Mira and walked smartly off to one of the seats in the main hold and sat down.

"I think that he would like to," continued Mira musingly, staring down at the sizzling steak in her pan. "Charge up your loading ramp, I mean. Have you seen the way he looks at you?" When the handmaiden did not say anything, she added, "Not that you would see the way that he looks at you. You're pleasantly oblivious to that sort of thing, aren't you? You've got your feathers all frazzled about him wanting you to become a Jedi and you can't see what he _really_ wants from you because of it. Poor vestal little Handmaiden, getting her innocent mind all sullied up by my not so innocent mouth."

"You don't think he really wants that, do you?" whispered Brianna as she turned various shades of red that varied from primrose to crimson. "He's not _that _sort of man, is he?"

She shrugged. "He's a man like any other, sweetums, and, like most other men on this ship, what he wants is indecipherable."

"But-" Brianna closed her mouth as the objects of her and Mira's conversation entered the room. Zeke, Atton, and Bao-Dur were dirty, tired, and splattered with mud but were otherwise more or less unharmed. The exile at least seemed to be rather pleased with himself.

Atton sat beside Brianna and slumped against the back of the chair. The handmaiden thought whe heard him mutter something like, "…surrounded by Jedi and then swarmed by ghosts of dead Jedi and then some fop with wheaty hair shows up and thinks he's all that just because he can bow. I can bow. Even Mandalore can bow. I'm about ready to hitchhike back to Nar Shaddaa." Then, more loudly, he said, "Is that steak? Smells like it's burning."

"It is not burning!" Mira cried out, highly affronted.

Ignoring what she clearly perceived to be a trivial exchange, Kreia stepped forward out of the shadows of the corridor and asked Zeke directly, "Did you find what you were looking for among the ruins of the enclave?"

"Why do you always ask whether or not I found what I was looking for?" said Zeke to his mentor. "The answer is usually 'no.'"

"But you always find something, do you not?"

"Sure, but we weren't too pleased to find some moronic historian who's setting himself up to be a Jedi if his fancy clothes are any indication," input Atton before the Exile could speak.

Zeke glanced at his companion but did not contest Atton's point. Instead, he said, "I want to go back tomorrow. There's someone –something –that I need to see again." He walked about the room and when it seemed that everyone had returned to their previous tasks, he leaned down behind Brianna and murmured, "I hope you don't have anything against the rain, handmaiden, because there's something that I want you to see tomorrow."

The handmaiden looked about, trying to see if anyone else had noticed their exchange but Atton and Mira seemed too enraptured with their silent battle of the wills and Bao-Dur and Mandalore too preoccupied with their conversation. Kreia gave no indication that she had heard anything so it was only Visas who looked to Brianna and, with a twinge at the corner of her mouth, looked away again. Brianna looked back to Zeke but the Exile had moved away and did not seem to be looking at her anymore. Quietly, the handmaiden returned to help Mira with the food.

Flashing a quick, sour smile, the huntress handed Brianna two plates and indicated that they were to go to Visas and Zeke. Brianna glanced down at one of the steaks in the pan, this one blackened, and asked, "What's that?"

Mira pushed Brianna aside and said, "What d'you think it is?" The handmaiden moved on and handed Visas a plate and then paused for a moment, listening to Atton's account of the afternoon's events:

"…So there I was and this huge bug-thing suddenly flung itself out of the shadows at me and I shot it point blank right between the eyes-"

"Well done," said Mira breezily as she moved briskly towards Atton and deposited a plate in his lap before walking away.

Atton looked sorrowfully down at the burned chunk of meat. "Well done, indeed."

.:Near the Enclave Courtyard:.

It was raining but that did nothing to discourage Bao-Dur and T3-M4 as they sifted through parts at the salvagers' makeshift camp out on the grassy hill. The mud stained the soles of Brianna's boots and the rain dampened her hood and soaked through to her silvery hair but the handmaiden only determinedly brushed one of her braids away from where it lay plastered against her cheek and followed Zeke as the Exile wove his way through knee high grass.

The enclave, or rather what had once been the Jedi enclave, came into view and, for a moment, Brianna was taken aback, stunned by both the beauty and the horror of what lay before her. Half-shrouded by the rain and the mist, what she could see had once been a magnificent domed structure was now a humbled and crumbling crater. Archways had collapsed and the walls and the pavement of the courtyard were scarred by charcoal-colored scorch marks that adorned the shattered enclave like battle scars adorning a war veteran. The main difference between the empty shell of a building and any battle scarred veteran was that the veteran, in the very nature of the word, would still be alive and breathing while the enclave was very much dead; a casualty much in the way that the Sith Academy on Korriban had been a casualty, in the way that the Exile was a casualty.

Zeke stiffened as he climbed over the rubble on the edge of the courtyard, pausing as though Brianna had spoken aloud. Instead, he said, "On rainy days, we'd go hiking out on the plains, trek out to the Sandral Estate and back. We'd go places no one else would go, see things that no one else had seen in thousands of years, maybe even more."

"'We?'"

He checked himself and then answered, "Revan and Malak. I'm sure that Atris has told me all about me being a part of their crowd when I was at the Academy. I know what you're thinking," said Zeke with a crooked smile, "and you're right that I probably shouldn't have hung out with her… and you're wrong. Revan wasn't like that, not then. If Atris is right that there was always some kind of dark seed in her, Revan kept it buried deep down. But Revan isn't why I wanted to bring you here. Revan has nothing to do with it… and yet everything to do with everything. Let's go."

He offered her his assistance as Brianna climbed through the rubble and she accepted it. Releasing her hand –a little reluctantly, Brianna thought –he took another look around and said, "The sublevel is much more intact than the rest of the academy but it was swarming with… creatures. I think we cleared most of them out yesterday but there may be a few more skulking around. It's dark down there so stay close and-"

"Why did we leave Bao-Dur at the salvage camp?" Brianna suddenly demanded.

"What?" said Zeke, clearly bewildered at the abrupt change of subject. "Because… because he's the best at looking through salvage and figuring out what we need? Why?"

"Because, based on my range of skills, you should have brought me here if there was an army of enemies but you said that there are none. There can't be many locked doors because, if there were, you'd have made Atton come along. Tell me, is there anything left in this enclave for you to look for?"

Appearing to be a little cowed by her razor sharp perception, he admitted, "Not really. But there's plenty to see."

"Then you have brought me here to show me… something?"

"I didn't bring you here to _show_ you anything," he replied a little defensively. "I'm not going to show you anything that you can't already see. And I know that you can see because, what I saw on Korriban, you saw too."

The handmaiden stared at him for a moment, filled with repulsion upon remembering the imprints she had born witness to in the Sith Academy. "I never want to see anything like that ever again," she told him flatly but clearly struggled to keep her voice even. "What I saw there was… hatred. And envy. And evil. I never want to see that again."

"That's exactly why you need to come with me into the enclave," said Zeke beseechingly. "I want you to see that not everything about the Force is evil or corrupt. Those people in that Academy were not the Force, they weren't accurate representations of what the Force can become when put into the hands of good, decent people. For sure it can be used for evil purposes but in that respect it is the same as any other tool. But the Force isn't always a weapon and it isn't always misused. That's what you need to see. You need to see that it be used for good and you shouldn't fight me on this. You said that Atris was wrong about me. If she's wrong about me, why wouldn't she be wrong about the Force?"

She hesitated. What he told her was so right… and yet there was still a part of her that still argued that he must be wrong and that to trust him would be a betrayal of what made her the Handmaiden. Finally, she looked up at his open, earnest expression and said carefully, "I'll see what you brought me here to see but… if I do some, if I become something, it must be my choice and my choice alone. I will not permit you to force me into becoming something that I do not wish to become."

"You're worried that I would _force _you to become a Jedi?" The Exile sounded confused and wounded. "Do you not know me at all?"

Brianna looked up at him and saw through the rain that he _was _hurt. She could see that there was some kind of feeling of betrayal in his brown eyes only half masked by the brown hair plastered against his forehead. But what could she do? Refusing to see was like a betrayal to herself, to Brianna, but losing her blindness would be a betrayal to the role she accepted, to the Handmaiden. Brianna looked up at Zeke and was suddenly struck by the desire to make amends, to make him like her again, to find redemption in his eyes, she reconsidered. What would the greater betrayal be? She weighed her options in her mind for she found that she could not do anything without betraying either Brianna or the Handmaiden.

"I do not think that you would force me to become a Jedi," she said slowly. "I think it would be a part of me that would force another part of myself to become something it is not yet ready to be. Atris told me that you influence others without even realizing that you are doing so. I do not think that is justified but part of me is clinging to it. I need time; I need to gather my courage. But I will see and not make a judgment until I have seen all that you believe I need to see."

"If anything, Atris is the one who has bent your will!" he exclaimed before he could stop himself. "She took away your own name and you still haven't taken it back as you have every right to do so. But…" Zeke stopped. "Let's not –it's not about Atris right now. It's about you, Handmaiden. It's all about you."

Brianna smiled despite herself. "I –I don't know where to begin," she confessed shyly. "It's never been 'all about me.' Where to begin?"

"How about getting out of the rain?" he suggested.

She nodded with another shy smile and let Zeke lead the way down into the sublevel. As they descended down the stairs, Brianna watched the Exile and then chose to speak her thoughts aloud, "There's something different about you. I find it… difficult to describe but it has been present ever since we landed on Dantooine. Its-"

"Maybe it's because I feel more than a little wary about returning home after so many years." He did not look at her as he said this. "Maybe it's because I feel a little more than depressed ever since the first moment I entered the Admin building and heard the settlers talking about how much they hate Jedi. Of all of the things I expected, I did not expect that."

"I'm sorry." She paused as they reached the foot of the stairs but Zeke kept walking into the hallway. Hurrying to catch up, she added, "Sometimes I wonder if my sisters would hate me if they were to see the way I act now. They'd hate me even more, I suppose, were I a Jedi."

"If they'd hate you, would they truly be your sisters? If they were your sworn enemies, would they still be your sisters?"

"My father's blood runs as strongly in their veins as it does in mine. Even if they were my sworn enemies until death and beyond, they would still be my sisters. Nothing can change that."

"Perhaps it is a similar thing with me and the Jedi," he surprised her by admitting. "Even if I hated them, I'd still be tied to them and I'd still be grateful for the teaching they've given me –no matter whatever happened afterwards."

"Atton says that the Jedi are teachers except when it comes to telling their students the truth."

Zeke hesitated. "Atton… has a great many opinions, doesn't he? I don't agree with him on that one, but I won't say that it isn't valid. What he said isn't limited to just the Jedi, but to all teachers. But that's his opinion and this is mine: I think it's often best for any student to discover certain truths on their own." They came upon a small garden at the end of the hallway and Zeke stopped, saying, "Here we are."

"Now what happens?"

"I'm not sure," he said with a wry smile. "I've never taught anyone who was so unwilling to learn."

"I am a handmaiden," contested Brianna. "Shouldn't the very nature of my position be an indication of my 'willingness?'"

Chuckling, he responded, "Then you're certainly the most unwilling handmaiden I've ever met. Are you ready?"

"But… what if I'm no good at the Force? What if I can't use it? What then?"

"It either takes to you or it doesn't," he replied with a shrug. "I think it will take to you; this sort of thing does run in families. But, in order for it to take to you, you have to take to it first." Zeke reached forward and placed his fingertips against her temples. "Close your eyes."

Brianna closed her eyes and felt him move his hands away from her face.

"Listen."

Brianna listened. She heard the rain pattering against the ground above her. She heard the roll of thunder and envisioned the crack of white hot lightning that must have accompanied it. But that seemed to melt away until she heard the trickle of water pouring into a basin long dried up and the laughter of children filled her ears along with the rustle of pages in a book being turned by a careless hand. She heard the quiet noises of conversation, heard footsteps in the corridor, the swish of a robe and the sound of a hem being dragged across uneven pavement. There was so much to hear that it was blinding and yet Brianna wanted more. She wanted to open her eyes and see but somehow she knew that that would break the spell. She felt a tingling in her wrists and the back of her neck like a warm whisper. She took deeper breaths and that strange sensation filled her throat and chest, oddly familiar and pleasant as though she had forgotten how to breathe a moment ago and had now learned anew.

Then the flood of the sounds of daily life dissipated and all that was left was a hum that seemed to fill the hollows of the shattered enclave, rebuilding it through noise… but not through noise. Through just… being there. It seemed to fill the cavities of Brianna's being as well and she took another breath as though in an effort to drown the hum but the sudden flood of oxygen proved to be overwhelming and she dropped to her knees.

Someone was there to catch her as she fell, to support her weight, and he whispered a single word to her, "Awaken," to which she responded with another word.

"What?" said Zeke as the Handmaiden opened her eyes. "What did you just say?"

"What did I just say?" she repeated hazily, groping at the ground to secure her perception of where she was. "Did I say something?"

"Brianna."

She blushed bright pink, not at the fact that he said her name but because of the fact that he saying her name seemed so pleasing to her. "Yes," she said simply, not knowing what else to say. "That is the name that my mother gave me, the name I would not tell you for fear of you gaining power over me. How did you learn it?"

"You said it!" His expression was nonplussed but he quickly smiled when he realized that _she _was teasing _him_.

Brianna broke into a smile too, this one a little sad, as she recited her living family's names the way her father always had, "Adele, Clytemnestra, Serena, Lyra, Alianne, Brianna."

He shook his head and helped her to her feet. "Not Adele. Not Clytemnestra. Not Serena, not Lyra, not Alianne. Just Brianna. Just Brianna, the only Echani sister that matters." Zeke laughed. "I cannot tell you what a relief it is to finally know your name. Are you sure that you're not worried that I'll now have power over you?"

"You couldn't have power over me even if you wanted to. I wouldn't give it up! But… you don't want power over me, do you?"

Still smiling, he shook his head.

"What happens now?" she asked, looking around at the garden. "Is that it? Did the Force… take to me? Is that all there is to becoming a Jedi?" Brianna stopped when she saw that he was laughing at her.

"That's hardly it," he told her gently. "Mira and Bao-Dur barely have their feet wet and they've been practicing for weeks. Sometimes, usually, it takes years. It took less time for me, although Master Vrook always told anyone that would stand still long enough to listen to him that I always convinced people that I knew more than I actually did, although –never mind that. The Force definitely took to you, Hand –Brianna. It took to you almost too strongly; I think you must have been pushing yourself to see and hear more than you can handle at this point. You're not a Jedi yet; you've barely recognized your Force Sensitivity, but you could choose to become on. As always, the choice is yours."

Brianna nodded and then nodded again, nodded a third time and said, "I want to. I want to be like my mother; I want to be like you. I don't want to be just another of my sisters; I want to be Brianna the Jedi. I couldn't want anything more than I want this. I want you… to teach me. Nothing could take that wanting away now. It's… it's swallowed me up, but it hasn't swallowed me up. It's a wave but it's a wave that I ride. I won't drown. I realize now that I won't drown. I can swim. You can show me how to swim; you can show me how to use the Force."

He didn't say anything for a moment but finally spoke. "If that is what you truly want. Being a Jedi isn't a life I would impose on anyone, but if you want it, I will teach you."

She flung her arms around his neck in a burst of inspiration and happiness. He held her for a moment and then, with great care, released her. Brianna let go and then looked around. "Where do we go from here? I've listened and I heard but on Korriban, I saw. Can I see here too?"

"Soften the focus of your sight," Zeke answered and, for a moment, Brianna thought his voice sounded uneven. "See without looking. Hear without listening."

Doing as he suggested, she allowed her sight to linger on the outlines of objects and not on the details. It took a moment but soon blurry figures began to manifest themselves against the backdrop of the broken enclave. "Oh," she made a small noise in the back of her throat as she perceived the small forms of younglings, Jedi hopefuls, toying with the art of levitating pebbles as they sat and crouched at the feet of a young woman who was perched on the lip of the fountain, dark hair falling forward to shroud her face as she studied a book. The woman glanced upward as if sensing Brianna's presence and her lips curled into a polite, open smile as she looked at, no, through the Echani.

"Revan," Brianna heard Zeke murmur.

"Is that really-"

"Not yet. Maria Starlight then, Revan soon to become." He sounded regretful. "Maria Starlight then; her name was Maria Starlight and she was beautiful."

But before Brianna could ask what exactly he meant by that, an imperious voice and a voice that she knew well, called out from within Brianna's head. "_Padawan Starlight."_

Revan –Maria –smiled again as another Jedi in familiar white robes entered the pavilion. "_I don't know why you call me 'padawan,' Atris, _said Maria in a voice like syrup. _You and I both know that I was appointed the rank of Jedi Knight more than a month ago. I believe it was about the same time that you were assigned to –I mean, granted the position of Assistant Historian."_

"_Is your new status your excuse for not watching over the younglings as you were told to do so?"_

"_Then might I ask what you are doing outside of the library?" _Maria watched Atris through half closed, almond shaped eyes. "_I would have thought that being an assistant historian would have entailed watching over books."_

Atris was silent for a moment. "_You are shameless, Maria."_

"_Well, if being 'shameful' is being you, than I'd rather be 'shameless.'" _She gathered hanks of her hair and twisted them back away from her oval face, fastening them into a neat bun at the nape of her neck. "_Why are you here? Were you sent here to chastise me?"_

"_No, but as I approached, I realized that you were in severe need of being reminded of what it means to be a Jedi."_

"_What? Come to collect on an overdue library book, then?"_

"_Hardly," _Atris glanced down at the younglings as though suspecting them of eavesdropping. Noticing this, Maria spoke up.

_Come now, Atris, _she said lazily, _they're too young to have disappointed you already._

_Maria, _said Atris but then stopped as though reconsidering the word. "_Maria –though I have heard that you call yourself 'Maria' no longer –that your name is now 'Revan.' Is that true?"_

Maria's –Revan's –dark eyes seemed to flash. "_And, if it was, what comes of it?"_

"_Nothing comes of it… if you stop now. But, really, is it part of your identity crisis that you insist on petitioning the Jedi Council day after day for leave to go to war when you already know the answer? Really, you and Alek-"_

"_Malak,"_ interrupted Revan through clenched teeth.

"_You and Malak disturb the Jedi Council nearly every other day, pressuring them to go to war. Every day that you do not petition them, you receive the same answer: no."_

"_I thought the only thing you were supposed to keep tabs on were book fines."_

"_Why do you keep going back?"_

Revan was silent but then said, _"People are dying, Atris. Can you not feel them? Do you not want to feel it or are the rumors true and your connection to the Force is not what it once was? _Atris did not answer and Revan clearly had not expected her to. _"I feel it, Atris. I feel them. I see death in my dreams. I hear the call for war in every one of my footsteps. I see and feel myself fight and I ask myself why I waste my skills sparring instead of fighting the Mandalorians. I hear others praise my power and my prowess in the Force and I wonder why they keep me in the Enclave. Every day, I look at my lightsaber and I question what it means to be a Jedi Sentinel when I am held back from protecting the people who need protection the most."_

"_I will not pretend to understand you," _replied Atris loftily, "_but I urge you to reconsider what it means to be a Jedi. I urge you to trust in the instruction and the knowledge of the Jedi Enclave. Your time will come, Maria. Do not force it upon yourself." _She turned away but then turned back. _"And I urge you to do justice to your duties as a Jedi," _she added, glancing down at the younglings run amok.

Following Atris's gaze, Revan shrugged. _""If you're so concerned, maybe you should turn the library into a nursery otherwise I'll do the efficient thing and cast a touch of Force Statis on the lot of them." _Atris appeared outraged and exited in a bit of a huff. Revan watched her go and, when Atris left, something in her melted and she seemed to shrink back to being just Maria. She sat back down and shook her head. _"Why would I force dreams of death upon myself?" _She wondered aloud and then Brianna allowed the vision to fade.

Neither Zeke nor Brianna said anything for a moment. Finally, the Exile said, "That was Revan… and that was Atris. Was she as you expected?"

"More or less," she replied which made Zeke laugh. She began to join in and then added, "Revan was… Revan was human. She was rude, certainly, but she was human."

"Does that surprise you?"

"It made me understand where good intentions could… go awry." Brianna paused. "I'm not sure how I feel about this. I need time to think. Was she this rude to everyone?"

"She was rude," Zeke conceded, "but what she had to say had some truth to it."

"Like what she said about Atris's skill with the Force?" Zeke said nothing so Brianna pushed forward. "It was true, wasn't it? But that seems so little like Atris… and yet explains so much."

The Exile shrugged. "I'll let you find your own opinions. I myself knew very little at the time and, well… I had other things on my mind. I went to war and when I came back Atris was on the Jedi Council just in time to exile me. I don't know how or why she was appointed but I don't think that there were many contenders for that position left. Perhaps if I had not gone to war…" he let the thought hang aimlessly.

"What were you doing?" Brianna asked curiously. "You know so much more about me than I do about you."

Smiling at her again, he replied, "Well then. Follow me."

He led her away from the crumbling garden and through the corridors. As they walked, he said, "I wasn't the most popular Jedi with some of the masters either. In particular, one master, Vrook, seemed to particularly despise me."

"You mentioned that he thought you pretended to know more than you did. Was he trying to discredit you? Did it stem from jealousy?"

"I think it stemmed from something a little deeper than that," he answered with a quick laugh before turning solemn. "Vrook was one of the masters who favored execution over exile."

Brianna fell quiet, stunned into silence. Atris had never told her of anything like this and, unless the Exile lied which she knew he did not, there seemed to have been a darkness in the Jedi at that time that Atris had never spoken of. Feeling betrayed, she looked up at the Exile who mistook the sad expression for something else. 'Cheer up," he said. "I'm obviously still here."

"Obviously," she agreed with a faint smile as Zeke paused before a door and began fiddling with the locking mechanism.

"Do as you did before," he threw over his shoulder. "Feel, don't think."

She felt and she did not think and, when the door opened, she saw Zeke, a much younger Zeke, standing at the workbench and fiddling with components as a much older man in a flowing robe entered from another door. _"Karis,_" said the older master.

There was something different about the Zeke that leaned over his workbench. He was younger, certainly, but it was as though the Exile had a great weight pressing down on his shoulders that was absent in his younger counterpart. It was a Zeke without the pressure of Malachor, a Zeke who could do battle without the weight of war. It was a man who stood tall, who would not melt into the shadows. But it was not the Zeke that _Brianna _knew and that made her uncomfortable. She glanced over at the Exile and saw that he was smiling wryly at his younger self.

Without turning around or even looking up, the younger Zeke said, "_I'm a Jedi Knight, Master Vrook. You don't have to address me by my surname anymore._"

"_It has not escaped my notice that you have unduly risen in the ranks of the Jedi Order," _the master said stiffly. "_But it remains my duty to see to all Jedi Counselors. Therefore, you will always be a Padawan to me, Zeke Karis, albeit a disorderly and disobedient one at that."_

"_Was there something that you needed of me, Master Vrook?" _The imprint of the young Zeke asked. He sounded both pensive and amiable but there was something in his voice that reminded Brianna too much of the defiance in Revan's. For sure Maria's insolence was absent but the defiance was there, alive and seething.

Master Vrook sniffed audibly. _"There is little that I require of one such as you, boy. What I have found disturbing is that _you _seem to have decided that the Jedi require little of you. You have grown too headstrong and too arrogant, too much like another whose company I have urged you to avoid in the past. Yet you defy me."_

"_If you're talking about Maria and Alek, I see no issue with one Jedi Knight speaking to another about current events that should be every concern of the Jedi's."_

"_Who else would I be talking about? And I am not speaking of 'Maria;' you and I both know that she has decided to call herself by another name and that worries me."_

"_Why shouldn't she?" _It was only now that the young Zeke turned to face Master Vrook. _"If 'Maria Starlight' is the name that the Jedi gave her, why should she not be able to choose another, one more to her liking?"_

"_You and I both know that that isn't the issue. But that is beside the fact." _Vrook took another step forward. _"You want to go to war."_

He stiffened. _"And so what if I do?"_

"_Do you even know what you'd be fighting for? The Council does not support the war; by fighting for the Republic, you'd be fighting against the Jedi."_

"_I thought that the Jedi did not deal in ultimatums. Only the Sith."_

"_Do you call me Sith, Karis?" _Vrook bristled at the idea.

"_That I do not say."_

"_You want to fight, do you, Karis?" _he asked coldly. _"You want to fight but you're not sure of what you want to fight for, are you? So you'll fight for whatever cause anyone throws at you. Does Revan make your decisions for you as well as share your bed?"_

The younger Zeke flinched and his lightsaber flew at him from the workbench. He caught it in his left hand and it ignited to reveal a blazing green blade. He held it in one hand as he stared at Vrook with anger in his brown eyes.

Vrook did nothing in retaliation, only observed the younger man. "_If that's how you feel about it,_" he said gruffly, "_you are to be confined to the Enclave until I have a word with the other members of the Council concerning this behavior of yours."_

"_Don't threaten me," _said Zeke in such a quiet and low voice it was dangerous. "_You've been looking for a reason to punish me for weeks and, finding none, came and sought me out in order to try and bait me." _He shut off his weapon and clipped it to his belt. _"Don't threaten me."_

"_If you and Revan and Malak went to war… I don't care if you go to war, Karis; you're so hot headed that you'd probably throw yourself into an impossible situation and get yourself killed but that is not my concern. My concern is how many you would throw into that impossible situation along with you. How many would you and Maria bring to death's door?"_

The Exile, the real Exile, the one Brianna knew, suddenly waved a hand and the vision disappeared. She looked to him and he did not meet her eyes. "I did not mean for you to see that," he said quietly, a very different man than the one she had seen in the vision, "but at least now you know. We should go."

And Brianna followed him out into the rain.

.:Khoonda, the Ebon Hawk's Landing Pad:.

It was raining but Brianna had decided that she didn't care anymore. She had actually grown quite fond of it in the last hour she had sat outside of the _Ebon Hawk. _It suited her mood and she supposed that she would find a perfect, lovely blue sky to be about the most vexing thing in the galaxy at this point in time. She did not understand why she felt so betrayed; Revan must have been so long ago, but how could one handmaiden stack up when placed beside a woman who had brought the galaxy to its knees only to decide that it wasn't good enough for her and then disappeared in a flurry of ebony hair and blue robes? He had called her Maria Starlight… and he had said that she was beautiful.

There was the patter of footsteps on the landing ramp behind her and soon Mira sat down beside her with a slight thump. "Hey," said the huntress. "You doing alright?"

"I told him my name," she said quietly, finding no need to conceal her emotions when they were so obvious. "I told him my name and then I found out that he and Revan… that they had…"

"Hooked up a power coupling?" Mira suggested.

Brianna laughed softly. "Yes."

The two women looked out at the rain. "And that bothers you?" asked Mira.

Once again finding no reason to lie, she replied honestly, "Yes."

"Right." The huntress settled herself down on the ramp and leaned against her hands. "That's right; you didn't exactly like it when Visas came aboard. How'd you find out?"

"I saw a vision at the enclave. One of the Jedi masters accused a younger Exile of it and… he didn't deny it."

"The younger Exile or the Exile we all know and love?"

"Both."

Mira was quiet again and Brianna was not sure if she was ever going to respond. What she did say was never what the Echani would have thought. "Okay, handmaiden. You're being an idiot. Okay, maybe you're just being cautious and that's a good thing or maybe we women can sometimes be too trusting and we shouldn't be and, if that's the case, you're dead on right. I mean, Force knows I haven't given up on Atton though Force knows that I should. But he likes you. I mean, he likes you. More than I think you realize and more than maybe even I realize. I haven't been able to tell so well with you, so far, but if you do… like him, you shouldn't let this stand in the way. Got it?"

"Got it," repeated Brianna with a weak smile and then watched the rain some more.

.:The Ebon Hawk's Cargo Hold:.

It was raining and the handmaiden could hear the drops through the train of her interior thought. _I am good, I am worthy, I am divine, _she thought to herself. _You are good, you are worthy, you are divine._

She felt as though she was in twilight, but twilight is a gateway and Brianna felt as though she was going nowhere. She looked up at the doorway and found it empty. It was as though someone had left her in the dark and it was too quiet, there was only the rain.

It was the way that Atris might have wanted her to spend her time on the Exile's crew, in solitude where she could become corrupted. But Brianna was slowly discovering that if the Exile was corrupted, Brianna wanted to be corrupted too. It did not seem to matter anymore where she was, but if she was with him.

Having come to this conclusion, she stepped out of the cargo hold and stepped lightly down the hallway. She passed by the dormitory but Kreia was not there, which Brianna would have found strange had she not had other things on her mind. She walked quickly to the cockpit, where Zeke was asleep in the navigator's chair as he had been all of those weeks ago when they left Korriban and she had not dared to wake him. This time… this time was different.

"Zeke," she said softly. "Zeke."

He woke with a start, brushing his brown hair away from his face before recognizing her. "Brianna?"

"I have decided something," she begun seriously. "I have thought about it and I have come to a conclusion. I want you to train me to become a Jedi but it's more than that. I want to stay with you, on this ship, but it's more than that. I want to stand beside you, for all of your days. Atris… she told me that you were in the darkness and maybe you were and maybe you still are, but it does not matter anymore. I swear that it does not matter to me anymore. If you are in the darkness and you have pulled me into it, as she might say you have, then that is what I want. I'll stay in the darkness with you."

"But… your sisters…"

"I swear it does not matter to me anymore," she said. "I could go back to them; even now, knowing the Force, I could go back. But I do not wish to be a handmaiden anymore. I'd rather stay in the darkness with you."

Zeke stared at her in awe for a few moments. "That is good," he said slowly, "for I would say that we have no need for handmaidens on this ship."

…

The rain seemed to be lightening up when Brianna stepped out of the cockpit and the sun seemed to be peeking out through cracks in the sky. She thought she could hear Atton and Mira in quiet conference in the side cargo hold off of the main hold but she could not be sure. She began to walk back to her cargo hold to gather her things, for she had finally felt confident enough to move completely into the dormitory with Mira and Visas but stopped in the middle of the corridor when she saw Kreia awaiting her return in the middle of the doorway to the cargo hold.

"Kreia."

The old woman seemed to have no need for pleasantries. "Have you ever considered that your mistress might find greater service from you, were you to think of yourself rather than the Exile?"

"Atris is my mistress no longer, Kreia. It is done."

"Indeed it is done," Kreia replied harshly. "It had indeed been done… all that was left was for it to have been done in _deed. _I should think that you have sparred one, last time and he has won. He has won, hasn't he?" Brianna was silent. "He is your master now; she is no longer your mistress. What interesting proceedings have taken place! I would not have thought a handmaiden –and such a lowly handmaiden at that –capable of such an act as betrayal."

"It is not an act of betrayal if I has been done for one for which I care for deeply!"

Brianna had spoken as firmly and strongly as she could but it did not stop the force of Kreia's final word for it seemed to travel everywhere all at once, buzzing in the Echani's ears and blinding her eyes and, far away on Telos, Atris awoke with that same tainted word resting softly upon her lips.


	8. Tempest

Tempest

By Elle Kitty

"Feel, don't think."

He said those words to her when he first placed the lightsaber into her hands. The cool metal rested in her palm, sent a slight shiver down her spine. But perhaps that shiver was a result of the warmth of Zeke's hand rather than the coolness of the weapon. She closed her palm around the cylinder, the narrow rectangular studs pressing against her palm and said, "What if I'm not a good Jedi?"

"You're a good Jedi, Brianna."

"How can you tell? My sisters always said–"

"I know what your sisters said about you." He stepped back away from her, his boots making slight sounds against the floor of the garage. "They said you had too much passion in your stance. They said that as though it is a fault and perhaps for an Echani, it is. It isn't for a Jedi. Being a Jedi is about having the passion to do good for the galaxy; to choose the right thing when the other option is easier. If that doesn't require a passion, what does?"

"But–"

"It's about trusting your instincts," he interrupted her again. "Feel, don't think."

…

Perhaps the Force was encouraging the Jedi Exile to haunt his old battlegrounds for Zeke Karis had found himself to be once more pacing through the jungles of Dxun. There were times when he believed that the Force had a sense of humor… and times when he believed it to be the cruelest judge. Today felt like a mixture of the two.

He was leaving again; if there was anything he did well, it was slipping away to fight yet another battle. He had preformed similar feats before; he had fought through bounty hunters, mercenaries, and even the ghosts of his past, present, and future and this time should be no different: he was going down to Onderon in the morning to try and single-handedly end a civil war before it truly begun. This time should not feel different, but it did. He had walked away from so many things in his life, from the Council, from war, from Revan, and had left so many people behind. Why did this time feel different?

Perhaps it had something to do with the woman in white who had stepped out onto the jungle floor beside him and had returned to the interior of the _Ebon Hawk _only moments ago. However, the moment that thought sprung to the forefront of Zeke's mind, he immediately dismissed it as impossible… a yet somehow impossibly possible.

He ran a callused hand through his dark auburn hair and shook his head back and forth, trying to erase the picture of Revan, of Maria Starlight, a vision in the darkest of violets with her shocking midnight blue eyes peering out from behind her curtain of ebony hair. But the moment that image disappeared; it was replaced with another, this one of Brianna anxiously looking up at him, the dark greens of the jungle framing her pale face and hair. She and Maria would have been a study in contrasts and he could not erase their faces from his mind.

"You're leaving tomorrow," she had said. For a moment, when Brianna had said this, Zeke was pulled back to another time, another place, when Revan had looked up at him with blue eyes that were yellowing at the corners and had said those same words. "You're leaving, aren't you?"

"Yes," he had replied both times. The Exile was not a man who twisted his words; that had always been Malak's realm of expertise. Zeke was a man of action and he had proved worthy of that epithet when he had turned from Revan, turned from Maria, and exited her chamber on her flagship, _Victory._ What a twisted victory it had been, Malachor, as though it was only a twisted dream, a tempest that would pull you under for only a few moments and, when you resurfaced, everything would be alright. But Revan had been the one who resurfaced and only few could have seen the real tragedy, that it had been Maria who had been lost. But Zeke could not so easily pick up the pieces of himself and fit them back into something vaguely recognizable of what he had been before.

Brianna spoke of swimming and perhaps it was those words that brought back all of these memories that quietly haunted the Exile. How could she expect him to teach her how to swim when he himself was drowning, slowly slipping into the quicksand? He could not be swimming, that would entail propelling himself forward through this sea of troubles that seemed ready to swallow him. Perhaps Zeke was floating; perhaps that was it. Floating seemed effortless and few seem to see how hard the act of floating along the surface actually is. To float and not to sink was a talent that he had perfected long before when swimming seemed too intimidating. It was easier to float and be pushed forward by something else.

"You're leaving tomorrow, aren't you?" the one-time handmaiden, handmaiden to Atris's will no longer, had said and Zeke had only replied that he would be back soon enough when everything on Onderon had been settled. He had wanted to say something else, something like how much he did not want to leave, how much he wanted her to come with him down to Onderon. What he said instead seemed to be too much like something else that he did not want to say, but knew he would have to at some point in the future:

"We all have our duties to attend to, Brianna."

She had nodded once and then glanced toward the slowly rising sun. "I know my duty." He remembered how the first rays of sunlight had illuminated her crystal colored eyes and brought color to her face. "I know my duty," she had repeated, "I am only worried that it will not go as we expect."

"I…" he hesitated and then made a half-hearted attempt at laughter. "I don't think that anything has ever gone the way we've expected. Ever."

"I have feeling that we are walking into a war."

"I think so too. I feel that perhaps the conflict on Onderon will draw out the Sith military forces."

"I am not speaking of a war of weapons, though that is sure to come soon. I feel that there will be a battle of the wills, of teachings, of… philosophies." Brianna half-smiled. "A strange thing for an Echani to say, to not believe that the most important combat is that of battle. But there will be a war of ideologies, of teachers. We will need teachers."

Zeke had looked over at her. "Then perhaps it is a good thing that you are among us, Brianna. We will need teachers… and I think you would make an excellent one."

She had snorted. "Certainly I would be a better teacher than Atton would be."

"Certainly."

They had shared a moment of silence, looking from the clearing up to the stars that were slowly fading into the rays of the sun. The Exile looked up at the sky and contemplated the spaces between the stars. "Do you really think we're in the darkness, Brianna?"

"If we are in the darkness," she had looked from the sky to him, "all of the better to see the stars."

And then she had left and Zeke had begun to think. What if he was… wrong? What if she shouldn't be in the darkness? What if he was destroying her even as he built himself up?

Those thoughts unsettled him to a degree that he almost literally felt a load deposited onto his shoulders. With a sigh, he turned around and entered the ship to contemplate this further and perhaps catch a bit of sleep.


	9. Revelation

Revelation

By Elle Kitty

"If you can't beat 'em, join 'em," Atton said when he announced his decision to become a Jedi. He had made the proclamation with a weak if not unsteady smile as though he doubted the words even as he said them but Brianna was sure that there would be no turning back for the pilot, especially when she saw Mira's reaction.

It was at that moment that Mira –much to nobody's surprise but Atton's –flung her arms around his neck and kissed him flush on the mouth.

Brianna watched the proceedings with one hand concealing her smile as Atton and Mira carried on –to no one's true delight but their own –in front of the entire crew. She was certain that she had a handle on her amusement until she caught sight of Kreia's expression of supreme disapproval. Glancing to the Exile, she saw that he watched the old woman as well and then Zeke caught her eye with an unabashed grin. Immediately, the two of them, Echani and Exile, doubled over in laughter.

Mira and Atton immediately broke away, the latter appearing as though he wished to rekindle his old ways and murder both Brianna and Zeke. "Do you mind?" Mira demanded.

"Shouldn't we be asking you that?" questioned Bao-Dur with a rare smirk.

"Look," replied Mira with false anger, "I've finally got him where I want him now. I may as well take advantage of the present circumstances."

"What she said," added Atton, who still appeared to be dazed by her sudden revelation.

With hidden and not so hidden smiles, the rest of the crew dispersed until only Brianna, Zeke, and the happy couple remained. The Echani lingered in the opening of the hallway as she watched Zeke clap Atton on the back and wink at Mira. Yet despite his seemingly cheerful mood, Brianna could tell that something heavy was weighing on his mind.

"I'm very happy for you both," he told Atton and Mira. "I'm glad that something good can come out of all of this trouble we've all been in. But I also feel like I need to warn you. You're both Jedi now," he shot a grin at Atton, "and you're definitely both capable adults. But even capable adults are susceptible to the Dark Side. The old Jedi Order," he seemed to swallow hard, "disapproved of love or relations between two Jedi or a Jedi and another. They said that such relations could lead to corruption. They weren't completely off of their rocker about that to tell the truth.

"I don't want you to think that I'm lecturing you or disapproving of you or anything like that. You're both my friends and you're both competent of making your own decisions. But I speak from experience that relationships between individuals that are both strong in the Force can lead to susceptibility to the lure of the Dark Side. And not just internal corruption but you leave yourselves open to the manipulation of others, especially your enemies."

"It's a typical bounty hunter tactic," said Mira calmly. "Hunters use it all the time: they kidnap loved ones or friends as bait for the real prize."

"Who would know that better than me?" added Atton with a grim smirk.

Brianna shivered at the mention of his past and was surprised that Mira did not. Could she so quickly make her peace with such an extreme revelation as Atton's past life? But as this thought entered her mind, she felt Mira's presence whispering wryly: _It's hard to find anyone nowadays who doesn't have too many skeletons in his closet._

But the huntress didn't make any outward show that she had entered Brianna's mind. "So you're saying that if one of us falls, the chance that the other falls is so much higher? Karis, everyone knows that when Revan fell, she took Malak down with her."

"Malak wasn't the only one she took," Zeke murmured and the Exile and Atton shared a knowing look. Brianna wondered how many ties there were between crewmembers that were kept hidden from the rest of them.

"Look," said Zeke, "it's not corruption but manipulation that's the bigger threat here. Sion for one left Vash's body in the Sith Academy of Korriban because he knew it would anger me. Can't you think of anyone here who'd like to use one of you to manipulate the other?"

All present, including Brianna, shared tight smiles, each knowing exactly whom Zeke referred to. The Exile was not blind and neither were any of his companions.

"She saw us, didn't she?" Mira said with quiet horror.

"I don't think that anyone on this ship _didn't _see us," said Atton.

She winced and made a helpless shrug accompanied with a quick, satisfied grin. She didn't seem to really regret her actions. "She's an old woman," said Mira heartlessly. "We'll deal with her when we need to."

Zeke looked as though he'd like to say something to combat that last statement but he said nothing. Atton cleared his throat. "We should be approaching Dantooine; maybe an hour 'til we land. I'll be in the cockpit, uh, meditating –or whatever Jedi do to clear their heads, drinking excepted. If there's anything you need me to do or anything I should do, Zeke, just ask. Not saying that I'll do it though."

The Exile nodded and glanced quickly to Brianna before dropping his gaze to the floor and exiting the main hold. The Echani watched him go with her blue-gray eyes wide and lips slightly parted: a quizzical expression. She might have thought that, given the circumstances, Mira might have missed the silent interchange but she was wrong. Mira missed nothing.

"Let's go, Echani girl," said the huntress as she steered Brianna toward the security room. Once they were inside, Mira reclined against one of the null security panels and pushed her red hair back from her face. "It felt good to get that off of my chest."

"As if anyone didn't already know," teased Brianna gently.

She shrugged. "Hey, I don't play games. I'll leave that to Atton. You've been awfully quiet lately though."

"I've just been trying to figure some things out."

"About Karis?"

"About everything."

Mira chuckled. "I bet he wouldn't mind if you followed my example. Maybe you ought to show a bit more… gratitude for becoming a Jedi, if you catch my drift."

"But aren't you a little worried about what he said about Kreia using one of you to manipulate the other?"

"Don't worry about me; I'll catch myself before that happens."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Don't you think that falling in love is kind of like freefalling? It is fun as hell; you just need to make sure you've got a good net to catch yourself with."

Brianna rubbed her forearm nervously, tugging at the sleeve of her robe. "What if I don't want to 'catch myself'?"

"Then you'd better hope that his affection is bottomless, that there'll be no ground to hit." She patted Brianna's arm reassuringly. "I don't think that you'll have that particular problem."

"And you think that you will?"

"I usually do," Mira replied with a shrug, "so I'd better have a safety net at the ready, shouldn't I?" She chuckled. "Basic precaution 101."

She laughed despite herself. "I never went to school."

"Hey, I didn't either. But the Mandalorians taught me plenty. They sure didn't have any safety nets when we lost and love's the same as war, right?"

"I wish there was a difference."

"Not in our day and age, sweetheart. War's screwed up everything and everything's suddenly a battle. Get with the picture, Echani girl."

"I think there's something more to love than fighting," responded Brianna thoughtfully.

"Not for a hunter, not for me," laughed Mira only slightly bitterly. "Told you I love my targets."

"But if one is a bounty hunter, doesn't that mean that you kill the one you love?"

She glanced away, suddenly withdrawn. "There are all kinds of death," she said softly. "And when you really love someone, you're the one who dies when they go."

.:Dantooine: Three Standard Hours Later:.

"Once this is all done, maybe we can get back to our lives," muttered Atton but even his grumbling sounded only half-hearted.

The crew was assembled in the shadow of the _Ebon Hawk _on Khoonda's landing pad. When Brianna had descended the landing ramp, she had been momentarily blinded by the light of the sun but now she was accustomed to the brightness. Still, she shielded her eyes with her hand as she looked for Zeke, awaiting his descent from the interior of the ship.

"What is our life now?" questioned Bao-Dur softly. "I think we've all become dependent on what the General does to determine our future. Makes you wonder what we'll all be when everything's said and done."

"There will be time enough to determine that," replied Kreia harshly. "Maybe you all will not survive the battles to come."

Yet somehow Brianna felt that if any one of them would die with the resolution of their journey, it would be Zeke's mentor. But their journey was done, wasn't it? The conclusion was near; the conclusion being Zeke's meeting with the collected Jedi masters. A knot formed in the Echani's stomach when she realized that the Jedi masters included Atris. But she would deal with that when she had to. She only had to be patient and put her trust in the future and the Force.

Quietly, she slipped away and up the ramp. As she once again entered the cool interior of the ship she had begun to consider as home, she closed her eyes and listened for the Exile. It did not take her long to find him at the workbench in the garage.

Zeke was fiddling with the components strewn across the bench. Brianna's mind was instantly recalled to the vision of Zeke in the Academy here on Dantooine. The Exile looked up as she entered. "I suppose that it is time," he said quietly.

"Yes." They seemed to have little to say to one another as it seemed that they could not bear to speak aloud what hung unsaid between them. Brianna felt a tightening at the back of her throat as she contemplated revealing her feelings for him but, passive as she was, she said nothing. "What do you think will happen?" was what came out instead.

Zeke's brown eyes met her gray-blue and she saw true vulnerability and fear in them. "I don't know. They all still seemed angry at Revan and at me for the war and what happened afterward because they still see us as the catalysts, even Kavar who was my friend. I think they still want to punish Maria but they can't because she left. I wonder if they'll punish me instead."

"But you never fell."

"They don't see that."

"Surely your actions prove otherwise!"

"Do they?" His eyes met hers again. "You heard what Vrook said to me all of those years ago. What if they see us all, the crew and you and Kreia and I, and they think that I've created a cult the way Revan did?"

"Then don't take us with you! We –none of us –will be your undoing, neither willingly nor unwillingly. But, please," her eyes grew wide in supplication, "take me with you."

"To the Enclave?" Zeke sounded confused.

"Yes! And everywhere else. I could not… I could not bear to be beside you, not when you face this."

Zeke stepped back from the workbench and moved towards her. "Brianna-"

"Exile." Kreia had followed them into the ship. "Time is slipping through our fingertips. You are being wasteful. Have I taught you nothing?"

"You have taught me much," Zeke fired back but then dropped his affronted tone. "We should go. Br –the handmaiden will accompany us."

Kreia's withered lips curved into a smile. "Will she? And will the _handmaiden _meet the Jedi masters with you?"

"Will you?" responded Zeke

"We shall see," she said cryptically and then made a motion for the Exile and Brianna to follow her out of the ship and they did so.

The rest of the crew watched them go without comment and Brianna noted Atton's arm around Mira and T3's mournful beep. Zeke touched the little droid's head with affection and Brianna suddenly wished that it was her that he touched. But she shook the thought out of her head and, like the handmaiden she once was, followed in his footsteps all the way to the Jedi Enclave.

The tall grass brushed against her boots and caught the end of her robe as they traveled over the slight hills. It was not long before they came upon the half-repaired dome of the old Jedi Academy. Brianna heard Zeke's slight sigh before climbing over the rubble at the edge of the courtyard. The Echani briefly recalled climbing over this wall before and remembered how Zeke had taken her hand. He did not take her hand this time.

The silence continued as they entered the heart of the enclave. Sunlight rained down upon the interior courtyard with the large garden sprawling with weeds. Kreia immediately moved to sit down upon the lip of the walled garden. Brianna was instantly reminded of Revan.

"Forgive me," the old woman said but her words did not seem to ring true, "for I am tired and would rest awhile. Go in, Exile. Your destiny awaits you."

Zeke did not look to Kreia but to Brianna. He looked as though he would have liked to say something but the words were caught in his throat. He merely nodded to her, a kind of sad salute and went into the shell that once was the council's chamber.

As soon as he was out of sight, Brianna moved as though she were to eavesdrop. "Don't," said Kreia sharply and the Echani felt the old woman unleash a bolt of Force Statis upon her. She rose from her perch upon the rubble and moved towards the frozen younger woman.

"You are weak, child. Who are you to think that you should be privy to the secrets of the Exile and of the Jedi masters?"

"There is something you do not want me to see in there, isn't there?" Brianna found herself able to speak. The Echani tried to reach out and feel the presence of the Jedi in the adjoining chamber. Revelation dawned on her. "Atris is not there, is she?"

"Smart child! You have learned something after all. Perhaps the Exile has taught you something after all. But you were a fool to choose to learn from him when you might have learned from me."

"You never offered to teach me and I would never have accepted!"

"It is not a matter of teaching." Brianna saw the shadow of a smile beneath Kreia's hood. "It is a matter of _learning_. Think of Revan: she was teaching the galaxy all sorts of things when the Jedi plunged into civil war but it seems that only the Exile and I actually learned anything."

"I would not have learned lessons in betrayal from you."

"No," she seemed to give Brianna some credit, "you seemed to learn that all on your own. But I suppose you were a most unwilling pupil before you stumbled into love."

"You know nothing of love!" Brianna thought of the Exile as she said this; she had to get to him. If Kreia was doing this to her, holding her captive while Zeke met with the masters, she had to protect him from her. She struggled against Kreia's Force Statis but she knew little of how to break the bonds that held her.

"There are all different kinds of love," replied Kreia thoughtfully yet absentmindedly, as though she were listening to something else besides Brianna. "I held the galaxy by the throat and yet I loved it. My enemies used the Force to blind me and yet I love the Force. I hate it too and all things that I love I hate. And all things that I hate I will kill."

"So you will kill me. You will kill Atton; you will kill all of us for you hold nothing but hatred for all of us, even the Exile. You seek the death of everything."

"I care far too little for you to waste my time ending your pathetic life. You are apathetic, Handmaiden, you only do as you are told. You are a waste of the Force. You could not even bring yourself to confess your pitiful love to the Exile, could you? As for the Exile, I love him for he is the means to the end of all things. And all things I love I hate and I kill."

Kreia ended her monologue and held up a hand. Brianna found that she could not speak. "But you could see," the Echani heard Kreia breathe. "But you could hear."

The old woman said nothing for what seemed a very long time and did not allow Brianna to speak either. Suddenly, she rose and moved towards the council chamber's door. "I am going in to kill him," she threw over her shoulder. "I suppose that you would attack me if I allowed you, perhaps prove that you are not apathetic for once in your miserable life, but I will now allow you." Kreia smiled sweetly. "I am certain that you will be a captive audience to these proceedings."

Brianna struggled as the old woman exited but could not free herself. Surely Kreia's power must be even stronger than the Echani had surmised if she was able to keep Brianna restrained from such a distance. And if she truly was going in to kill Zeke…

No! Brianna would not allow herself to even think such a thing! She could not kill Zeke; she would not. Why would she kill him if she had spent so long keeping him alive? Unless… unless she had only been using him to gather the Jedi. Brianna's thoughts ticked turbulently like clockwork gears whirring too quickly. Unless Kreia wanted to kill them all in one fell swoop. No. She wouldn't do that.

She hadn't killed him… yet. That much Brianna could feel through the Force. There was a great presence in the adjoining chamber… but then suddenly, as though a candle had been blown out, that presence was extinguished. In comparison to the life the Echani had felt from it previously, there was nothing.

Zeke was gone. There was no presence of his mind anywhere near Brianna –almost as though the Exile had dropped into a dark dreamless sleep he could never wake from. Frantically, Brianna reached out to him again, hoping desperately for merely the dimmest of flickers of his previous vitality, life, but it was as though he was a star that had just winked out of sight. Out of existence. It seemed that all that was left was a huge, gaping hole that reached out and consumed everything, all light, and Brianna, the supreme annihilation.

And there was nothing that Brianna could do about it. Zeke had winked out of existence and even as Kreia's hold of Force Statis on the Echani dropped, Brianna crumpled upon the courtyard floor and did not rise. She thought of nothing; there were no words to explain the feelings of loss that swallowed her. "Oh," was the only noise she made.

Never again would she see Zeke's orange lightsaber blazing through the darkness of a cave. Never again would she see him, a portrait framed by the flames of the burning cantina in Iziz. Never again would she feel his hand upon her arm, his fingers grasping hers as he pulled her up from the ground, the curve of his shoulder as she laid her hand against it to comfort his loss. His loss! No loss but hers in the end. No loss but hers.

No wondering what might have been. Brianna had no words, but her mind was full of pictures: the rain plastering Zeke's hair to his forehead, his grin when he first saw her on Telos, his vulnerability when she found him alone on the bridge over the abyss on Korriban, his face drawing closer to hers as they sat below the Onderon moon. Never again would she see him do anything else save what he had already done. Even she knew that she would not even remember all of what she did now, that she might grow old and forget his name. She would not see him again; he was no phoenix that could be recalled to life.

Her world would not be the same without him. _You're the one who dies when they go_, Mira had said. In death, the Exile was death itself, the destroyer of Brianna's world.

"Now, will you be apathetic as you always were or will you find justice?"

Brianna was hauled to her feet as Kreia reached out with the Force. Immediately, her lightsaber flew to her hand and the Echani ignited the silvery blade, prepared to rush Kreia. But she found that the older woman had snatched the weapon from her hand and tossed it upon the ground. "Don't be stupid," she said not unkindly. "You have much to learn, little girl."

"You killed him!" Brianna spat out from between her teeth. "How could you? After all that we've done-"

Kreia struck her across the face, splitting Brianna's lip. A rush of blood fell into her mouth, as salty and as bitter as her pain. The Echani tried to spit it out and the red mixed with the tears streaming down her face. As angry as any animal prepared to avenge her mate, she fought Kreia's hold on her, attempting to lash out at the old woman, strike the betrayer across the face with long scratches like the wildcat Atton had once likened her to.

"He had to make his sacrifice, fool," Kreia replied ruthlessly. "He had his part to play, as will you."

"I will play no part in your schemes. I will go in there and I will see his death for myself and then I will kill you. Slowly."

"You will go in there, will you? So you can do what? Cry over his corpse? Swear to avenge his death? You are more fool than I thought." Her voice dropped to a whisper. "I would have thought better of you. Avenge him in anger, like any common Sith? Would that really do? Does that serve his memory? Did he fail to make you a proper Jedi, girl? Are you just as bad as that Miraluka, raw in your emotions, hating me like any Sith?"

"I see you for what you are; you are a Sith, old woman, and have deceived us all!"

"You do not see that way of the galaxy; you are too young. Pity. There would always have been someone to deceive you; there would always have been a Darth Traya. If it had not been me, it would have been another. Someone just as broken inside. Someone just as disillusioned with the galaxy and the Force. Perhaps your Exile. Perhaps your Atris."

"Atris," Brianna repeated. "Atris."

"Yes," said Kreia in a bemused tone of voice. "Your former mistress. Are you so surprised? Did you not see _her _for what she was? A broken Jedi, disillusioned as I am, bitter as I am, yet not nearly as ruthless."

"Atris." Brianna thought that Kreia underestimated the white haired Jedi. And Atris was the last of the Jedi –the life of the other masters had been just as clearly winked out as Zeke's. And who better to deal with an old Sith than the last of the old Jedi? Surely Atris was powerful enough to dispose of Zeke's murderer, this "Darth Traya."

Kreia allowed Brianna freedom of movement and the younger woman rolled her shoulders back and allowed her weapon to lie where it may. "What do you want from me, Sith?"

"I want you to take me to your mistress." Brianna did not allow her lips to curl into a satisfied smile; to do so would be to betray her motives. "And you will do so."

Kreia smirked and used the Force to push the Echani out of the enclave garden and towards the outer courtyard. Brianna paused before exiting the enclave. "I cannot believe he is gone."

"Believe it," said the old woman curtly. "It will go easier for you if you do so. Death will go easier. Now find me a ship. And don't even think about betraying me. I will kill you if you do so."

_Atris will kill you first, _though Brianna resolutely. _And if he is truly dead, I will kill you if she doesn't._

A/N: Whew. Sorry it took so long to get this done. Finally have a bit of spare time and it feels oh so good. Thank you so much to all of my reviewers and your encouragement. It means so much. –EK


	10. Heavy

**Heavy **

_By Marianne Bennet_

The glassy material of the cockpit windows fogged over as Brianna gently guided the stolen shuttle down into Telos's atmosphere. Surrounding the ship was the milky white color that so often characterized blindness. The hue, or lack thereof, was reflected in Kreia's eyes. "Good," said the old woman. "I knew there would be a use for you. Bring her down, handmaiden. Quickly but quietly."

Flurries of snow blurred Brianna's vision; she waved a hand as though to brush them away only to realize that the snow was on the other side of the glass and there were tears still lingering in her eyes. She observed that fact blankly as she tried with difficulty to make out the craggy peaks of the ice cap. "Why the need for secrecy?" she asked, attempting to sound innocent and biting down a sarcastic reply. Forcing herself not to look at Kreia, she added, "It isn't as though Atris is waiting for us."

An invisible hand jerked the Echani's head back. "There is no 'us,'" Kreia hissed. "There is no 'we.' There is only myself and what I look to accomplish. I have no need for you to be in the picture much longer. Know this. Understood?"

"What of… the Exile?" Brianna forced the words out from between her teeth. "Where did he fit into the equation?"

"Karis?" She flinched at the name and Kreia smiled as though Brianna's pain brought her amusement. The old woman continued. "Does it hurt to hear his name, child? Would it hurt more still to hear what he truly was? No one save perhaps Revan knew him so well as I, though many claimed my understanding, your Atris among them. You would do well to make good on this opportunity."

"You claim to know him but there must be matters he kept private, even from you!"

"Do you think so?" Kreia's voice lowered as her hold on Brianna's head relaxed. "Then know this: he is a survivor, like me, and no one but another survivor might know him for it. He'll run from a fair fight and hide in the tall grass at the edge of a battlefield, wait for an opportunity to strike from behind and only when he is certain will he make his kill. You have borne witness to his skill; how long did it take him to seduce you?"

"He never so much as kissed me, Kreia," Brianna shook her head slowly. "He never did anything to imply a seduction."

She chuckled, low and comfortably. "I hardly speak of physical matters but of a seduction of the mind, though I suppose that, what with a young girl like you and a handsome man like him, physical matters may have followed. It matters little. If you cannot see his hold over you, then his power is great indeed. Speaking of power, he doesn't want it. No, Zeke Karis is not that kind of man. He's attracted by power; he does not want it, only wants those who have it. And you, handmaiden, do not have it. He would have tired of you quickly; you are lucky to be free of him."

"Lucky," repeated Brianna. "In what way am I lucky? I left my home, left everything I knew, at the bidding of one Jedi to spy on another. I saw things that were better left unseen, struggled with myself day after day, night after night, over whom I should trust and who I should become, struggled to gain a peace of mind I so craved only to have it ripped away from me with his death –a death caused by you!" she flung the words at Kreia as though each were a knife. "And you call me lucky?"

"Lucky to have your heart broken by my actions rather than by his!" Kreia fired back. "How long do you think it would be before you lost him? He was a man who loved danger, the hunt; you are far too easy prey for his liking. He had you… and then he would have turned to another, the assassin maybe, the huntress perhaps? Not the handmaiden. Never the handmaiden. You are lucky that I have done what I did. He would have been a much slower, more painful death for you, handmaiden. What a shame you cannot see the great gift I have given you."

"No shame but mine," replied Brianna tonelessly. "I have given you my help in opposition to my heart. And yet, just two days ago I could not see the division between my head and my heart though it had once been so clear. Now my feelings have returned to such clarity and yet I have lost my peace of mind. It will not come back now that I know what it was like before, will it?"

Kreia was silent for a moment. "No, it won't," she finally said, "but rest easy, child." She began to move away from the pilot's chair. Then, more to herself: "Besides, if Tobin follows through with his intention, soon such matters will be beyond you, as they are beyond me."

She watched ice crystals splinter across the windows as the old woman exited. In any moment now, the boxy silhouette of the Jedi academy with its four pillars would come into sight and Brianna's sense of dread would increase further. Already, the Echani knew that there was something very wrong though she could not put a name to the wrongness. Whatever it was that tugged on the corners of her mind, deception and conceit were woven into the very fabric of its nature, elusive just as Zeke had said Revan was–

A deep pain resounded within Brianna. Each of Kreia's words had been a knife thrust into already open wounds and the mere thought of the Exile smarted like ocean water sprinkled upon each gash. She pushed the pain down and hid it somewhere deep between her ribs and lungs.

Idly, to distract herself and yet with the attitude of picking at a scab until fresh blood bursts forth, she wondered if the others knew yet. She imagined Bao-Dur waiting patiently for a general who would never come back, of Atton and Mira waking up entangled in each other's arms and realizing that the man who had brought them together was gone. She did not envy them the time they might spend pacing the plains of Dantooine, running through the _Ebon Hawk _and calling out for him, his name echoing in the hallways of the ship he had loved so well even as the sound echoed through the corridors of Brianna's consciousness.

She had not slept since Dantooine for she knew that if she did she would dream of him. Even as Brianna sat in the pilot's chair and the academy came into sight, her eyelids grew heavy. She forced her eyes open wide. _No more dreaming of the dead_, she told herself even as she thought she could hear the cracking of her own resolve. The memory of him, her memory of him, felt heavy like the weight of water pressing down hard. She did not wish to think of him but think of him she did. If his death affected her so, no matter what Kreia said, did she love him?

"It does not matter whether you loved him or not," said Kreia suddenly as she returned to the cockpit. "What mattered was whether he loved you."

"I know he did," Brianna whispered; it came out more as a sigh.

"That does not matter much either. How much? Numbers are the currency of the galaxy, not words and their underlying meanings. How much is what counts. How much power, how much love, the quantity is what matters. We deal in concrete evidence and solid fact."

"Not you. You deal in lies and illusions."

The old woman smiled a wanly, her smile like the waxing of the moon. "And I am a dying breed."

"If you are dying out, it is because you have betrayed all others of your kind."

"We may be dying but we are certainly not dead yet and our method of reproduction lies in the supplanting of thoughts and ideals. We have time aplenty." Kreia's lip curled. "You call me betrayer but, if you knew my story, you may question who is the betrayer and who is the betrayed. Land there."

Brianna did so. The shuttle came to a halt at the center of the icy plateau. Kreia reached over Brianna's shoulder and flicked the switch that lowered the landing ramp. "I believe I will be able to enter the academy unhindered."

She rose but hesitated. "What of my sisters? They must still be there with Atris."

"They will prove no obstacle to my progress," she threw over her shoulder as she turned away. "But, were I you, I would not stray from this ship."

_No! _Brianna wanted to shout. _You may think me your servant but I am not! I came to deposit you at your destruction; I will be present to see your ruin. You call yourself betrayer but, before this is done, we will see who the betrayer is and who is the betrayed. I will see your ruin complete!_

Instead, she met Kreia's gaze and nodded. The old woman studied the Echani's face for a moment and finally said, "If it brings you any last comfort, he thought of you at his last," and then swept away.

Brianna did not wait long to follow.

…

Some perverse curiosity drew the Echani to her old room. Now, standing in the doorway of the closet-like chamber, she marveled at the size of what had once been her living space; it was little more than a cell at best, a cupboard at worst, somewhere to store cleaning equipment. With amusement, she wondered if she was a broom to Atris and, if so, was Adele a vacuuming device? She began to laugh but stopped herself. Methodically, she checked every room in turn. No one was there, not even a sulky Alianne, and that worried Brianna. Had Kreia dispatched each of Brianna's sisters so quickly?

"If so, it matters little," she said aloud and listened to her words reverberate throughout the chamber. "It matters little," she said again. She had lived without a mother, without a father, what was one more gaping hole in her heart where there had once been something? Again, she forced herself not to think of the Exile; she would not deal with that now. Yes, she could survive without sisters and that was the only kind of surviving that Brianna allowed herself to think of.

Suddenly overcome with a sense of loss that was truer than any of her false reckonings of late, Brianna sunk down onto her bed. A sadness akin to paralysis swept over her; she had never before felt so heavy, so much like a rock half buried in sand as the tide pulled over her. Oh, why did he have to die? Why could she not go back or at least beg the Force to let her switch fates with him so that it would be Brianna who knew death? At least then, he might have known how much she–

"No more," she told herself sharply, speaking aloud and caring little about who heard her. "If he is dead, then I am dead. If he is dead, then my heart is in the grave with him. I live, but I do not live. I do not want to live. I do not want to live in a world without him."

"But you do live," a voice seemed to float into the room, a voice akin to Kreia's most persuasive tones, more melodic but at the same time harsh and commanding. "You do live and so does he."

Brianna rose and lifted her chin, always ready to meet a challenge no matter what that challenge may be. Her blue-gray eyes darted into every corner of the room, seeking a speaker and finding none. "Who are you? Show yourself."

Adopting a clipped, chiding, and confident tone, the voice said, "Now that wouldn't do, now would it?" An invisible hand pushed Brianna back onto the bed. "You never were very grateful for the gifts given to you, less grateful to the givers, and it is a vice that has been cultivated within you, not by yourself but by others. You once were so clever, so talented, but now I fear that your sight has failed you. You have digressed. You are blinded by grief but it is a grief that is illegitimate. The source of your grief does not exist. It is an illusion."

"And who are you to tell me what is and isn't an illusion?"

"Who do you trust? Do you trust that witch that has led you here?"

"She did not lead me here; I led her!"

"That's what you think," said the voice quietly, gently, "but she knew the path to this place quite well, too well. You do not know what she is, what she is capable of. Do you think she is powerful? She knows if you do and then she is an old woman in your eyes. You then think her an old woman; she knows there is power for her in your blindness. She is always what you think she is not. She can be innocence personified when in reality she is the other side of snow." The voice paused and Brianna chose that moment to leap off of the bed.

"Do you think me ignorant of the fact that Kreia lies? I know she lies; this is different. She needs me this time. You think me manipulated but that is not the case. I have no value to her other than the vechicle which she employs to gain access to this place! Hinder me no more, vision; I must go and do what I came here to do."

"You are blinded."

"I can see!"

The voice did not say anything for a moment; then: "Could you?" It paused. "Would you? You underestimate your pull over him were you used as bait. Would he not come for you were you in danger?"

"He is dead." The words felt wrenched from her throat. "Do not dare to tell me otherwise; I did the right thing. And I do not know if he would come for me."

"He would," said the voice firmly. "You know that. Do not deceive yourself, Brianna; that is a service others are too willing to supply. Do you now see your true use to her? You doubt what she had made you believe even now and wisely so. Will you act on it? That is the question: will you act on your doubt?"

"One should wait to act until one has all the answers; suspicion alone is not enough," answered Brianna tonelessly.

"You've already acted on suspicion once; do not be pert with me. Will you act?"

Brianna stared at her hands for a long moment; only then did she look up. "I feel as though there are two voices in my head, neither of which I trust. I cannot seem to even trust my own thoughts; fear that someone has tampered with my motivations is overwhelming. I can't seem to even be able to distinguish between what I know to be true and what I want to believe. I would he was not dead; by the Force, I wish he were not dead and I fear that I am allowing my longing to get the better of me. I do not trust you, as I do not trust Kreia, as I do not trust myself." She laughed softly. "Truthfully, it is nothing personal."

"Can you not understand what I am trying to tell you? You sit in a well of grief, refusing to see your own salvation. I do not know what perversity of feeling drives you to believe otherwise but he is alive. Kreia never destroyed him; she merely manipulated you into believing that she did."

"I fear him being alive as much as I fear his death," confessed Brianna quietly. "What place is there for me in his life if he lives? He would be my ruin."

"Kreia was the ruin of the three Jedi masters. He was not. He will not be your ruin, just as she was not his. Do not allow her to be your ruin either."

Brianna flashed a grim smile. "I was ruined from the moment I saw him," she said bluntly, "but it was a ruin that I not only allowed but perpetrated and encouraged. And, if I could go back, I think I would do it all over again. Disillusionment was a kinder teacher than others, though I was a most unwilling pupil."

"There are all kinds of ruin," replied the voice diplomatically, "just as there are all kinds of teachers and, as with teachers, some are better than others. There is something to learn from Kreia, just as the Exile has learned from her, but you cannot allow her to hold you back." The voice paused. "If what I have said is not enough, at least find the answers for yourself. I would never want any child of mine to take a witch's words at face value."

"Wait." Brianna looked up. "Mother?" But the air that had felt so full of… something only moments ago now felt dank and dark, heavy but empty all at the same time. She got up again. Her legs felt like something akin to concrete but their weight was nothing compared to the heaviness and newfound weariness of Brianna's heart. But still, buried beneath that well of emotion was the unmistakable desire to do something.

So she started running.

She sprinted through the ill-named Jedi Academy she had once called home, past the training room and the cell block, heartbeat thudding up into her ears where it made uncomfortable residence. Brianna ran, the soles of her boots battering down upon the hard floor, her steps echoing through the corridors. Usually, she moved silently; this was one of the few times she recognized that her step truly had some weight to it. So she ran some more and found herself in the mockery of a council room that Atris had created for herself.

Mockery indeed, as Atris had spent more time in her meditation chamber than anywhere else. But yet Brianna wondered if Atris did sit in the council room from time to time and, if she did so, did she reflect on the memory of those who had been lost or did she imagine herself grand master of a new Jedi Order?

Coming to an impromptu standstill and nearly losing her balance in the progress, she found herself gazing at the sterile, gray surroundings with an attitude that was as much bewilderment as it was caution. There was something drastically different and foreign to this place, a shadow that lingered in corners and doorways. Something nibbled at the corners of Brianna's sight and hearing, again something malignant in nature that she could not quite name.

It was in this fashion that Brianna was so distracted that she did not see the first of her sisters to appear.

She emerged from the shadows as though she had been a part of them all along though she was a ghost in silver and white, _a vision in white, _Zeke had once called Brianna. It had sounded as though he had been quoting something when he said it; she had always meant to ask him about it. In truth, what was the difference between a vision and a ghost? If Zeke appeared to her, would it be as a ghost or a vision or something else entirely? He had called those visions in the garden "imprints;" she had seen the way he had looked at Maria Starlight. She wondered idly if he had looked for her imprint in empty spaces. She wondered if she would spend her life listening for the Exile in echoes.

A voice brought the Echani jarringly back to ground. "So, you returned after all."

She met the gaze of the first sister without flinching; it was a struggle, her eyes felt so very heavy. With a start, she realized with shock and horror that she could not identify whether the speaker was Serena or Lyra. What a thing, to not recognize one's own blood! Still, Brianna stood her ground and met the handmaiden sister's eyes. "In a fashion," she replied with something of a carelessness better suited to Atton or Mira. She swallowed. "Where is Atris?"

"You came here with another," said Brianna's sister. She was not to be dissuaded. "Who is she? Why did you bring her here? Why did you think for a moment that _you _could return, let alone reveal our secret location?"

"I've hardly revealed you," objected Brianna. "She's been here before."

"She came here with the Exile," another, taller sister appeared. Dark shadows around her eyes betrayed exhaustion. "She came before. It was the day he came here and our sister left us."

_Adele_, Brianna remembered. Had her eldest sister really changed so much? There seemed a hunch to her shoulders that had not been there before. Had the creases around her eyes always been so worn? Had her face always looked so much like a mask? It had not. Something in Adele had changed_. Something_, decided Brianna as she gazed around at her five sisters, _in all of them has changed._

"And what of the Exile?" asked a third sister more provokingly. "Has he accompanied you? Does he lurk in the shadows behind you like some poisonous snake waiting to strike?"

"No," Brianna squared her shoulders as she spoke. "I brought none with me save she that has already passed through here."

Perhaps motivated by the desire to inspire shock in her sister Clytemnestra, perhaps because saying it so many times and to so many people would quell the doubts lodged in her heart, perhaps to give Zeke some hidden advantage unbeknownst to her at that time, she said, "No matter. He is dead."

Her words had quite the opposite effect. Clytemnestra's smirk crumbled but not in the fashion Brianna had hoped. Now she sneered. "And now you entertain us with lies. Well, we are sufficiently entertained. Have you anything else to offer us?" Before Brianna could answer, she continued: "I know you don't; we all know you don't. We all know that you've come to us as his disciple, come to preach and to inject his venom into our veins. Atris has already forewarned us; we will have none of it."

"Atris," said Brianna again. "Where is she? Have you already allowed Kreia access to her?"

"We allow nothing that our mistress does not command," intoned one of the sisters that were not Adele or Clytemnestra dully. "She sought counsel with your companion and we facilitated discourse, as Atris desired. When she wished that the woman be granted safe passage away from this place, we granted that as well and she departed much in the manner of which she arrived."

"She never once said that she had a companion," said Clytemnestra to Brianna accusingly. "This must be dealt with."

Brianna's knees locked. Kreia was already gone; suddenly, the one-time handmaiden was five years old again. "Please, take me to Atris."

"To what purpose?"

"Discussion," answered Brianna. "Reconciliation, perhaps. Understanding of what has happened and what is to come."

"You say many things, little sister," replied Clytemnestra, "but very few of them have any meaning to our ears. You are foreign, little one, last of the handmaidens, and your words have little more substance to them than the whistling of the wind or the babbling of a stream."

"Please, let me see your mistress," she said, casting her gaze about and watching a new handmaiden sister step forward from the shadows. "Please take me to Atris."

"'Our mistress?'" said that handmaiden sister with a quizzical expression. "Why not your mistress as well? Brianna–"

"Sister!" barked Clytemnestra but the youngest of the handmaidens save Brianna ignored her.

"Where did you go?" continued Alianne as Brianna remembered her. "Where did you go? You left us here, never said a word to any of us as to where you went, Atris never said anything, where did you go? Where did you go, that day so long ago, and what did you do? Why did you leave me?"

"And why have you returned?" asked the sister who had been the first to arrive.

She looked at her hands before saying, "You already know the answers to those questions. I thought Atris had told you I had left on a mission for her. I traveled with the Exile; now he is… dead and I seek audience with Atris. Would you deny me?"

"What do you seek, last of the handmaidens?" asked Adele, pacing as she did so. "Security, confirmation, what are you looking for in coming back to us?"

"I know little of what those words mean to me!" snapped Brianna. "I seek understanding which only Atris can give me!"

"Or do you seek judgment?" said Clytemnestra. "That service we might grant you."

"Sister," said Adele, "what of Atris?"

"There is no need for Atris," she replied scathingly. "This is a simple matter of… discipline, one that can and should be dealt with among the Echani. I would say among family but she is no relation of ours, not anymore. Either way, there is no need for Jedi intervention."

Horrified, Brianna replied, "How can you say that? I'm your sister!"

Alianne appeared doubtful. "Sister…"

"Alianne," Brianna reached out to her.

"Stop!" said Clytemnestra, turning on Alianne. "You know your oath, sister. You know what you have foresworn. You have promises to keep. Do not allow the traitor to tempt you away from your path. We know our duty, don't we sister? You have relinquished your name; do not forget it."

"Forget what?" said Brianna when she could not stand it any longer. "How can anyone remember anything if one chooses to lose one's own identity? That name was given to you, Alianne, by our father. Did he hide from his own name? He loved us and named us all for a reason. Would you forgo his legacy? Clytemnestra?"

"By choosing to honor one part of ourselves we do not necessarily choose to dishonor another," mused a handmaiden. Alianne remained silent.

"And why call me traitor?"

"That fact is indisputable," Adele finally spoke up. "You are deemed a traitor by your actions and, being a traitor, should be considered no sister of ours. You defy the ways of the Echani by traveling with a Jedi. I see you went so far as to carry a lightsaber," she observed, looking at Brianna's belt.

"I have done no worse than our father!"

"You carry a saber and no other weapon," mused another sister. "Our weapons and battle stances are our way of life."

"Just because I honor one part of myself does not mean I dishonor another!" Brianna retorted. "This is not a matter of honor; it is a matter of tolerance! How can you not understand that one person can owe loyalty and love to more than one sector or… or person! Divisions can exist in harmony."

"And to whom do you owe love and loyalty to besides your family and those to whom you are sworn?" taunted Clytemnestra.

Brianna met her elder sister's eyes. "I have formed bonds the likes of which I see now you cannot comprehend." Clytemnestra moved forward as though to strike the younger woman but she merely ducked out of the way. "I am not like you, sister. I went away. I am different than you, from all of you, and I am not ashamed of it. If you chose to say I am no sister of yours, choose to exile me, so be it. I will make my own way. But do not hinder me any longer. Adele, grant me an audience with Atris as you did for the one who came before me."

It seemed a long moment before anyone spoke. Then Adele said, "Atris does not wish to see you. She knows what you have done, what you have become, and she is done with you."

"Knows what I have become?" Brianna repeated. "But how? And what does she mean? I have done nothing to dishonor her, nothing that could be taken or even perceived as offense! I have only done what I know to be right; will she not see me?" Tears began to flood her silver-blue eyes. "Will she not look on me? Will she do nothing?"

"You betrayed us, sister," said Adele, "and are subsequently sister to us no longer. Will you say anything further before we dispense judgment upon you?"

"This is no trial," she replied even as the shadows of empty council seats loomed overhead, "and you are no masters to judge my actions. There is but one judgment I would succumb to and it does not belong to any of you!"

"Indeed, you have succumbed too much," said Clytemnestra. "What you say and do now is no doubt due to a prior ministration of his. You succumbed to his tricks, his lies, and his manipulation. His poison flows in your veins, contaminates your body, outcast; these words are merely symptoms of the disease that inhibits your actions."

"You are blind, Clytemnestra. All of you are blind. There is something in you that you cannot see, something in all of you!" Brianna caught her breath. "And if I am an outcast, I would rather be an outcast than a poor, blinded thing like you!"

That was when Clytemnestra launched herself at her younger sister.

Brianna found herself shoved to the ground where she was victim to a series of well placed blows but her lightsaber still flew into her right hand. Drawing upon the Force to do what her reserves of strength could not, she pushed herself back up to her feet. She staggered two steps to her left, ducking as a quarterstaff was swung overhead. Fighting with the Force was different' it was as though she could see a shadow of where someone's hand would be in a moment and yet see where it was now all at the same time. Not long after Clytemnestra attacked, the other four handmaiden sisters fell into the fray.

Her movements seemed to belong to her no longer. She swept through the battle with steps unfamiliar to her feet, a combination of Jedi blows and Echani stances that flowed and meshed together in utter and complete symbiosis. She did not know for how long she fought' time flowed seamlessly around her, its passage only marked as one handmaiden sister fell to the floor and then another. Brianna kept moving; her actions were quick and deadly but she was never out of breath. Battle with the Force at her side created a serenity within her that could not be shaken by any physical blow her opponents could deal.

When the last handmaiden fell, Brianna was standing. With a jolt, she realized that, even with the combined power of all five of her sisters, they had proven no match. She stared into nothingness for a moment, stunned by this revelation. When she had gathered herself, she knelt beside the nearest crumpled sister –Clytemnestra –and whispered, "When we fought, you aimed to kill. You would have killed me; you would have killed me in a heartbeat."

The elder woman suddenly coughed and Brianna jumped back in surprise, face painted with wariness and distrust. Clytemnestra made no movement to strike. "Will you not do the same?"

For a moment, Brianna's pulse leapt. The chance to be rid of her scornful and cruel elder sister forever… it was an opportunity that Brianna might have leapt for not too long ago. But at what cost? Killing someone? What if that someone had made her life miserable since the age of three, mocked her, hit her, pushed her down every chance she had, abused her in nearly every sense of the word? But… kill her?

"I have every right to," said Brianna through clenched teeth. "You know what you did. You know that I have every right to!"

Clytemnestra coughed again. Blood trickled from the corner of her mouth. She laughed softly. "Ah, but you won't, you see," she replied before closing her eyes again.

Shaking her sister's shoulders to keep her awake, Brianna demanded, "Why don't you cry, sister?" It had been a question Clytemnestra had asked of her many times. "Why don't you beg, sister? You should be begging me for your life, sister; why don't you cry?"

Her voice rang throughout the chamber. Her sister cracked a smile. "Because I don't want to," she said bitterly and slipped back into unconsciousness.

Brianna loosened her hold on Clytemnestra's shoulders until her sister fell to the ground. She rose to her feet, her blue-gray eyes roaming the room, counting the white-clothed bodies around her. They numbered four; had one escaped? No matter; Brianna would not kill them, not any of them, not in cold blood, perhaps not even in the heat of battle. Why should their deaths weigh on her conscience? It was more than that. Something Zeke had once said finally rang true in Brianna's mind: _"I tried to hate him… He was trying to kill me, after all; I had every reason to hate him. But I… couldn't."_

"I think that there are more powerful emotions than hate in this galaxy," said Brianna aloud. She reached down, felt Clytemnestra's pulse and, assured that the beat was steady and sound, said, "You're right: I won't kill you, though you would not do the same service for me."

"Or is it a disservice?" murmured a voice behind Brianna. The Echani turned and Atris moved out of the shadows. "Have you done your sisters a disservice by leaving them their lives? There's a lot that you don't know, Brianna. Are you trying to be the heroic Jedi like Revan? Like the Exile? Like your mother? What are you trying to accomplish by these actions, Brianna?"

Brianna took a step back. "Me?" she asked. "What am I trying to do? What am I always trying to do? Who was I always trying to be? Do you not know? How can you not know?" There was a tremor at the back of her throat but she caught it and answered her own question: "You. It was always you."

"Me?" exclaimed Atris, releasing a sharp bark of laughter. "Me? Why in the galaxy would you ever want to be me? You're such a child, Brianna; you haven't learned anything, have you, Brianna? Why would you ever want to be me?"

"Isn't that what you wanted?" she replied, a hollow sound in her voice. "You wanted to remove my heart and replace it with ice, just like yours. Are you not satisfied with your creation?"

"I never claimed ownership of you, child, nor do I see you as any creation of mine. I have nothing but scorn for you," said Atris coolly, electricity beginning to crackle at her fingertips. "You could never be me, Brianna; I merely allowed you to think that you could be. You lack the capacity, the discipline…"

Brianna shook her head with a small smile. "No. It was nothing lacking in me at all."

A stream of blue lightning extended from Atris's right hand toward Brianna's heart in a crackling flash. Brianna narrowly avoided it by throwing herself to the left. Breathing heavily, she crouched behind the center stone as another burst of lightning hit the ceiling.

"How long?" she heard Atris demand. "How long did it take you to betray me? Months?" Another crash rang throughout the chamber. Brianna sprinted across the room, looking for new cover as Atris moved from her original position. "Weeks?" A third streak of blue hit somewhere up in the shadows. "Days?"

"I didn't betray you!" shouted Brianna as she leapt over Adele's crumpled but still breathing form and quickly ducked behind a pillar. "At least not in the manner you accuse me of!"

"Did you go so far as to accept his teachings?" The pillar began to topple and the Echani dove to the right, narrowly escaping being crushed. "Do you believe his lies?"

"No more than you believe Kreia's!" cried out Brianna as she flung herself out of the way of yet another bolt of lightning. "Look at what she has done to you!"

"I see nothing but my own potential." Atris's blue eyes glowed like the bolts she hurled. "She has done nothing save reveal to me what I am to become. I shall be greater than the Exile, greater than Revan!"

"Are you insane?" snapped Brianna from behind a row of council seats when she could stand it no longer. "Do you really believe that Kreia wishes to usher in a new dynasty of Jedi under your command?"

The crashes of lightning ceased for a moment. "No," said Atris musingly, "but I know where she does and I shall send the Exile after her. Then, there, they can destroy each other in the core of Malachor V!"

"You will do no such thing," she retorted in response, stepping momentarily out into the open. "I would die first!" That was when Atris caught her off-guard.

"So, you feel that way about him, do you?" said Atris as Brianna was suddenly bathed in crackling blue light, sending her body into convulsions. "How far would you go for him, hmm? You would die for him then?"

Brianna meant to plead but could not find the words; pain smothered her throat and lungs.

"So, tell me truthfully: how long was it? How long was it before you fell in love with him? How long was it before you shared his bed?"

The pain was all consuming but, in a brief moment of clarity, Brianna thought she saw the Exile in the doorway but quickly dismissed it as a hallucination and drifted along into blackness.

…

She regained consciousness but chose not to open her eyes. If this was death, this was alright. There seemed a pleasant drowsiness encapsulating her body and her mind and her thoughts had a lightness that they had lacked in previous hours. Even better was the opportunity to not think at all so she banished consciousness from her mind and allowed her weight to fall back down into the arms that held her…

Arms. Holding her. Brianna returned jarringly to the present.

Her eyes flew open and she was instantly lost in a sea of browns and golds with slight flecks of amber and green drifting across like boats lost in an ocean: Zeke's eyes.

"I thought you were dead," he said, a look of relief washing over his face.

She attempted a smile but ended up wincing instead as she whispered, "I thought you were dead."

"Far from it," he said in a voice that was slightly hoarse and then, very gently, evaluating the expression in her eyes and the reaction on her face, he leaned down and kissed her very softly.

Brianna found herself leaning up to meet him, arching her back; more than that, she found herself kissing him in return. It began hesitantly, gently, but then turned into something more frenzied, more desperate. Then, he made as to pull way but, making a noise of objection, she reached up for the back of his head and pulled him back, winding her fingers into his hair. He willingly complied. Finally, only then did they release each other and, even then, not fully, not quite letting go of one another.

"Why didn't you wait for me?" he asked, brown eyes hazy.

"I thought you were dead," she repeated incredulously, truly smiling now.

Indignantly, as though proving that he was very much alive and well, he kissed her again. This time, Brianna broke the kiss and pulled him close. Wisely, Zeke did not say anything more and merely held her, letting the silence surround them. Words seemed very unnecessary; they could look at each other and know what and where they were. But, after some time had passed, Zeke murmured, "We need to go."

In that sound, the moment dissipated and the memory of the past few hours rushed back to Brianna. Zeke got up and then pulled Brianna to her feet. He did not let go of her hand as she looked around and asked, "What happened to Atris?"

The corners of his mouth turned downward. "You mean after she tried to kill you? And me?"

"Yes," she swallowed. "After that. You didn't kill her, did you? Because I would not have wanted that."

"Of course, you wouldn't," said Zeke with a heavy sigh followed by a grim smile. "I didn't kill her, much as I may have wanted to when I saw you crumple to the ground. She's in her meditation chamber now, with your sisters I think. Do you want to see them?"

"No, I don't," Brianna said very quietly. "I do not wish to see her or any of them. That part of my life is over. I wish to move forward, with you."

He looked at her a little strangely. "Are you sure?"

"Yes," she replied and, as she said it, she knew she meant it. "Let us leave this place. I presume that Kreia is gone."

With a nod, he confirmed that was the case. Then Zeke hesitated again. "I never even asked if you were alright."

"Physically, I am fine though I can sense a migraine coming on," answered Brianna with a slight shrug. "Mentally, I am stable as well. Emotionally, however, I am confused. I'm not sure of where I stand. Do you love me?"

The words were out before she could stop them, logical analysis interrupted by emotion. She flushed and glanced downward, waiting for Zeke's response.

"What do Jedi know of love?" Zeke seemed to force his grin but stopped trying when he saw Brianna's face. "The truth is that I don't know where I stand either. What is love to me? I used to think it was manifested by the inability to live without that person at your side but then I went out to the Rim and figured out just how easy it is to prove myself wrong. What I feel for you is… different but… Honestly, I don't know, Brianna." He tried smiling again. "There: a cryptic answer to what shouldn't be an enigmatic question; I'm getting more and more like Kreia every day. What do you mean? What d you feel for… me?"

Brianna bit her lip and decided that it was better to deny at this point than to lay herself out on the line for another cycle of betrayal; Kreia's words suddenly had more matter than before: "Then I suppose it is fair to say that I don't know how I feel either." She didn't meet his eyes. "Come, what happens next?"

They began to retrace their steps back through the academy. "We go to war is what happens next," said the Exile grimly, suddenly transformed into a man of battle. "Kreia has drawn the first of our three enemies to this place, Telos."

"Then you do realize that she is the third of our enemies, don't you?" asked Brianna.

"I rarely think of anything else these days," he replied, "except when I think of you," he added with another grin.

Brianna wanted to smile too but she realized that Zeke had changed again in those last few moments, had become cautious where he had been so bold only minutes before. Could it be because she had asked him if he loved her? Had she moved too quickly? But he had seemed to certain when he had kissed her and Brianna felt she had done nothing save respond in kind. That moment had gone by so quickly and Brianna's familiar sense of confusion settled in like a well-used mantle about her shoulders, a familiar weight now doubly heavy. What did he want from her anyway? Yet she kept on smiling despite her worries as he talked on of what Atris had said to him and the plans he must make. Was he going away from her so soon? Would he take her to Malachor with him?

They approached the _Ebon Hawk _and her heart leapt in her throat. Force, how was she going to look Atton, Mira, or Bao-Dur in the eye? Zeke caught her gaze and very quietly said, "They were all worried for you; I was worried for you. No one blames you, Brianna."

No one but herself, she observed. She nodded and then replied, "Please: not yet."

He nodded too, understanding, and then guided her up the ramp and through empty hallways until they entered the cargo hold. They passed by Atton and Zeke nodded to his pilot who then turned and went in the direction of the cockpit. A few moments later, Brianna could feel the ship begin to take off. Zeke didn't say anything; he merely shut the door to the hold behind them.

The Echani roamed her old territory, checking each of her belongings in turn, letting her hands rest gently upon a familiar swath of gray fabric before turning back to the Exile as he said, "Will your sisters be alright?"

"What?" she asked in confusion, her fingers still clutching at the silvery material ever so slightly.

"Should we have gone back for them? I should have thought of all of this, I suppose, but when I came in and when I saw you, everything just… melted."

"They'll be alright," said Brianna, still staring at the gray robe. "I didn't hurt any of them… much. And Atris is there; she won't hurt them, any of them, not like she did…" _Me. _"I should go and–"

In two strides, the Exile crossed the space between them and gathered her into his arms. "I'm sorry I didn't get there sooner," he whispered into her hair. "I wasn't sure. But I came, Brianna."

"And I am glad you did," she tried to tell him but he would have none of it and pulled back away from her.

"I've never really gone chasing after someone the way I did with you, not in a long time. Before I woke up on Peragus, I'd gone a long while without caring for anyone, least of all myself. But then you came into the picture and sent me veering off into a new direction. You put me back on course and, hell, if I don't know what the word 'love' means, maybe we can define it. Together."

He cleared his throat as though he were embarrassed by his own words. "Where are you going again?"

Brianna reached for Zeke's hand, crossing the distance between them. Entangling their fingers, she smiled up at him, returned to that same level of certainty, and replied, "Nowhere."

"Then maybe I should go nowhere too," he said softly.

"I don't care where I'm going," said the Echani to the Exile, "so long as I'm with you."

"Um, Zeke?" Atton's voice came over the intercom. "Apparently, we've got a wee problem."

Zeke stepped back from Brianna again and said, "Go on." He winced at the Echani but she shrugged with a smile.

"Citadel Station is under attack from an unknown enemy."

He bit his lip. "Plot a course for the station, Atton." He glanced apologetically to Brianna. "I have to go."

"Come back to me," she replied.

He showed her a lopsided grin. "I always do." And then he was gone.

…

A/N: Sorry it took so long to get this out. I was in tech week for a show and writing a play and making major life decisions –you know, the day to day. I'm really happy this is out and off my chest. Please review; it always makes me so happy :) -MB


	11. Catalyst

**A/N: Well, it's the end of a series that spanned a very long time; five years, in fact. So, I want to thank all of my readers and reviewers and people who had faved or put EC on alert. This last chapter's for you guys. **

**Catalyst**

_By Marianne Bennet_

"Are going to do this or what?"

The speaker was Mira and her words echoed in the cargo hold's empty spaces. Brianna checked the door again and, reassured that it was still locked, resumed leaning against it. Atton raised his eyebrows at the Echani as though he suspected her confidence in his abilities to secure a lock that even the Exile couldn't jimmy open but she simply met his gaze. Now wasn't the time to engage in such minor debates.

"How much time do we have?" asked Bao-Dur quietly, also glancing at the door.

"We're two hours out from the Malachor System," said Atton to the newest member of their conspiracy. "We've got time but as not much as I'd like."

"I believe that sentiment is mutual among all of us," intoned Visas from where she knelt against the metal floor to Bao-Dur's right. "If we are to take Kreia by surprise–"

"Who says that we can even take the old witch by surprise anyway?" cut in Atton.

"It doesn't matter whether we can or can't," said Brianna. "What matters is that we do this."

"She's screwed up all of our heads," agreed Mira. "I say we blow the bitch to hell and back. It's not like she's got any chance at redemption, no matter what Zeke's been dithering about this entire time."

Brianna pressed her knuckles against her bottom lip as she slid down into a seated position, resisting the urge to delve back into the childhood habit of gnawing on her fingernails. What Mira called "dithering" was the Exile trying to come around to the idea of ending Kreia's life. It was not an easy choice for Zeke Karis to make and the Echani wasn't sure that, even two hours out from Malachor V, he had made his decision yet.

He hadn't taken a stand on a lot of issues that had come up lately. He still wasn't sure of what to do about Atris, the one-time Jedi historian, didn't know if he could live with himself if he killed Kreia off, and then there was that other thing. That thing that he did not want to talk about with Brianna.

"I don't care where she is or what she's doing," Mira continued, her voice breaking into the Echani's thoughts. "I say we shoot a rocket at her, blow this thing, and go home."

"Blow up Kreia," replied Bao-Dur, a note of suspicion in his usually level tone, "or blow up Malachor?"

"I was thinking of the former. What are you thinking?"

The Iridonian shrugged, letting a wave of calm drifting off of his emotions and seem to settle upon the other conspirators. Yet Brianna thought she could detect undercurrents of something else in his apparent serenity as he said, "Kreia's an evil woman but Malachor is an evil place. It has the potential to breed further evil."

"Well, the whole point of killing off Kreia before Karis gets any humanitarian ideas into his head is to keep her from, uh, breeding a whole new generation of evil," said Atton in a mocking tone. There had been a time when Brianna would have suspected the pilot-turned-Jedi of true mockery; now she knew better. Scorn of others was Atton's coping mechanism, something he had taught himself to replace fear.

"How was he when you spoke to him last?" said Visas, turning to Brianna.

Brianna shrugged, knowing that all eyes were upon her. "Confused," she replied. "Confused is the best way to describe it."

"When is he not confused?" Atton rolled his eyes. "He's always just gotta have some moral quandary going on in his head all of the fracking time."

"Just because you don't have the emotional capacity for a moral quandary," Mira began but Atton leaned over and covered her mouth with his hand. She mumbled into his palm for a couple of moments and then reached up and shoved his hand away. "Doesn't mean that you have to go around criticizing people who do," she finished, slightly breathless and still glaring at him.

With a slight sigh of pleased exasperation, Bao-Dur glanced over and met Brianna's eyes with a smile. She smiled too and said, "Zeke's just having a time of wrapping his head around these last few days. He's trying to mentally prepare himself for what he may or may not find at Malachor."

"What do you mean may or may not find?"

"Sometimes not finding what you expect pulls the rug out from under you more than finding something unexpected," responded Mira, sliding down from her perch upon a plasteel cylinder and leaning back against Atton's knees. "I take it that what you're trying to tell us is that he still can't decide whether he can kill Kreia or not. Is it bad?"

She nodded. "Sometimes it's almost as though he has arguments with himself. Out loud."

"The bottom line is whether he's going to kill her or not?" Bao-Dur bit down on the corner of his mouth. "What do you think he'll do?"

It took Brianna a few moments to wrestle with herself but she finally shook her head. "He's not going to," she said in a voice hardly louder than a whisper. "He won't do it. He keeps saying that it's something he's got to prove, that by not ending her he will be the stronger."

With a snort, Atton muttered, "Jedi mumbo jumbo."

"It's more than that. He says that killing her makes him no better than she is, than Sion or Nihlus. That she's pitiful and to take revenge would be a disservice to him and his…" Brianna staggered in her description.

"She has done the galaxy a great deal of harm for one he calls 'pitiful,'" murmured Visas, slightly spiteful.

"What use is she alive to him?"

"You can't think of it that way, Mira," said Brianna, slightly desperate to protect the Exile's interests as she perceived them.

"You certain that him not wanting to kill her isn't self-serving in any way, shape, or function?" asked Mira of Brianna dryly but not unkindly. "You sure it's got nothing to do with what that Admiral Onasi told him back on the Station?"

She fell silent. "No, I can't say that," she murmured.

Atton and Bao-Dur exchanged a glance of mutual confusion but the huntress's lips merely twitched in a small, sympathetic smile. Turning to the rest of the group, she said, "Someone's gotta kill her. We all know that."

"Oh, do we," muttered Bao-Dur and Visas nodded agreement.

"And if we're going to do it, we have to get to her before Zeke does."

"You study up on your basic principles of bounty hunting, sweetheart?"

"Can it, Atton." She turned to the Echani. "Are you going to help us out here?"

Unwillingly, the Echani nodded. "She deserves to die. No matter what Zeke says, she deserves that fate."

Suddenly, Visas held up a hand in warning. All present quickly fell silent. Brianna listened to the stillness and glanced at the one-time assassin in puzzlement. It was then that she heard the hushed punctuation of quiet steps outside of the cargo hold door.

Quickly, very quickly, Atton reached behind the plasteel cylinder he leaned against and withdrew three bottles of juma and five dusty glasses. The cups were wordlessly passed around the hold's occupants and the bottles' caps twisted off so that when the Exile rapped on and then opened the door, the conspirators made a clever picture of comrades sharing a drink the night before a big day.

Mira touched the controls and the door slid open; Brianna turned an open gaze to the man she thought she was in love with who also happened to be the man she was about to barefaced lie to.

If it made her feel any better, she was well aware of all of the times that Mira must have lied to Atton and all of the times that she knew Atton lied to Mira, as he had lied to everyone else. It didn't make her feel better though. As she looked up at Zeke's face, drawn with all of the constant tension of someone who knows that they are on the cusp of some irreversible event that will not only affect them for the rest of his or her life but also has the potential to throw the galaxy even more off kilter than it already is, the glass in her hands seemed to grow heavier and she was even more conscious of Mira pouring the alcohol into her cup.

"So," the Exile said, leaning against the doorway and attempting a smile, "what are you all up to?"

No one else even tried. "Commandeering Bao-Dur's juma stash," answered Atton explicitly. The pilot raised his cup to his lips but Brianna noticed that his mouth tightened against the potent liquid.

"You stole the bottle from me and now you're pouring me a glass?" said Bao-Dur, feigning outrage.

"Maybe Atton didn't think you'd share otherwise." Mira shrugged. She didn't even pretend to drink. "How far are we out from Malachor?" she asked idly.

"Two hours," the Exile answered with the promptness of someone who had been thinking of little else. "That's not nearly enough time to come down from a hangover, you know."

Mira and Atton exchanged a quick look before the huntress rose from her seat, handed Atton her cup, and stretched. "I'm surprised that you're not trying to stop us," she yawned. "We ought to be at our best when we all go out there."

He shook his head. "That's what I wanted to talk to you about," Zeke said quietly. "I'm going out there alone."

"You're not doing that, general," responded Bao-Dur immediately.

"Goddamnit you're not," added Atton, getting to his feet to stand beside Mira. "Is that your idea of a noble action? Suicide by psychopathic Jedi?"

"It isn't suicide," said Zeke defensively. "I'm doing this consciously."

"That's the definition of suicide!" Atton snapped.

"I'm not going to get myself killed!"

"Like hell you're not!"

"Bao-Dur is right." Zeke's head turned immediately to her when Brianna spoke up. Rising from her seated position, she turned to the Exile and said, "You can't do this to us, Zeke. Not here, not now. You can't expect us to stand by and watch you play hero. Not anymore."

"You've kept us safe for a long, long time, general," Bao-Dur added to Brianna's sentiment. "Now that you've given us the tools to protect ourselves, it's time for us to return the favor."

The Exile glanced to Mira and Visas. "Do you agree? Where do you two stand?"

"I stand with you, as I always have, as I always will," replied Visas with a shrug, a flicker of warm emotion in her voice. Brianna shivered.

"And you?" he looked to Mira.

The huntress met his brown gaze. "I stand with Bao-Dur and Brianna. I'd stand with Atton too, if he stopped being so dramatic. You can't do this alone; you've gotta get that through your skull, Karis. And, even if you could go solo and survive, we aren't about to let you."

"Please understand," said Brianna softly. "We can't lose you a second time."

"I can't ask you –any of you –to do this for me."

"Don't you get it?" said Mira with a shake of her head. "That doesn't matter to us. We do as we please and, in this case, what pleases us is to help you."

"I'm not even sure if that's true, Mira."

"I'm telling you that it is. Shouldn't that be enough? And I know that I speak for everyone here. Now, don't make me get all mushy."

"It's an accurate assessment," confirmed Bao-Dur. "We want to help you. It's not in your interests to stop us."

"Is it in _your_ interests?" Zeke looked at each of them in turn. "Is it in any of your interests?" His gaze met Brianna's and she forced herself not to look away. "Are you here because you want to be here or because…. Because…"

"Of course we want to be here, at least now we do," replied Atton brusquely. "You didn't like me at the top of this little odyssey and nobody could say that I was in love with you but I'm pretty sure that I'm in a better place now than where I would have been otherwise."

"Are you sure about that?"

"What would've been the alternative? Maybe I'd have been passed out in some cantina. Maybe I'd have been dead if I could've been so lucky."

"Don't say things like that, Atton," cut in Mira. Her tone was soft but reproving.

Atton shrugged. "Proves my point."

"I'm not talking about whether anybody's better off," snapped Zeke. "I'm talking about choices. Were any of you really given a choice about whether to come with me or not?"

The companions-turned-conspirators looked around at each other for a moment, Brianna among them. Did they have a choice? Zeke had said he found Atton in a holding cell on a deserted mining facility; Mira had been sent to guard the Exile by another Jedi and her safety on Nar Shaddaa had seemingly been compromised in the ensuing chaos. Bao-Dur had always been tied to Zeke and, ever since he found the Exile crashed on Telos's surface, had the mechanic ever really been granted an opportunity to leave before becoming a Jedi? Visas had been presented with an ultimatum when Zeke destroyed her lightsaber. As for Brianna… need she say anything about the choices that the handmaiden had made for herself?

Brianna looked about the room at the others and saw the same thoughts and doubts upon each of their faces. Only Zeke remained stonily expressionless. "Can any of you tell me that joining me was your choice?" he asked flatly. "Can you say that without lying to me? Without lying to yourself? Well, can you?"

The following silence was then broken not by Mira, not by Atton, but by Brianna. "And what's this supposed to accomplish, Zeke?" she asked more coldly than she had intended. "Are you trying to discourage us? You know by now that it does not work that way."

"Doesn't it?" he asked bitterly.

"No, it does not." The Echani glanced to Visas, having not expected any support from the Miraluka. "Your allies, Exile, are also your friends. We are your friends, Zeke Karis, and friends do not let those they care for walk the surface of dark places alone."

"You can't follow me." If nothing else, Zeke was stubborn to the last.

"You cannot tell us what to do and what not to do. By doing such a thing, you become what I know you fear most, Exile." He remained silent as Visas spoke. "You may only trust in your teachings, that we will do what we know to be right."

It took a moment, but Zeke finally nodded his head, perhaps in defeat, perhaps in accommodation of his companions' obstinacy. "I can't tell you what to do," he began, hesitating, choosing his words, "but if I find you, _any of you_," his eyes met Brianna's, _"_following me…"

He shook his head and exited with his head still bowed in contemplation or sorrow; Brianna couldn't seem to distinguish between those emotions anymore. Mira exhaled a breath of relief.

"Suicide by psychopathic Jedi is right," Atton couldn't seem to resist muttering. "I'm just surprised that he wasn't giving away all of his stuff by now. There was a nice gold crystal that I had my eye on…"

"Atton," said Mira in warning, glancing at Brianna.

The Echani had sunk back down onto the floor, resting her head upon her knees with her white hair falling down around her temples. "We have to do something," she whispered. "I don't know what Kreia told him, what Atris told him, whatever he's come up with on his own; but we have to do something."

"Aye, aye," agreed Mira grimly. "We don't know what Kreia's got down there. It might be just her or maybe she's got a fleet of Sith assassins at her beck and call."

"Or maybe she's reconciled with Sion," added Bao-Dur in a murmur.

Still scowling, Atton moved to shut the cargo hold door again. "Either way, we can't sit around talking about planning something here. We've got to plan _something._"

"And Zeke can't see us. Ever."

"Good call, Blondie," replied Atton. "Plus, if he's so concerned about preserving our measly existences, I'd make a bet that he's all set to spare Kreia. We have to do something about that."

"We need to make some practical decisions," mused Bao-Dur, "starting with our landing. You are going to be able to land the _Hawk, _right?" he asked Atton. "Since the battle, those storms have been very, very intense."

"Just tell me where to put the hunk of metal and I'll put it there," answered Atton harshly. "You got a choice selection of landing zones?"

The Iridonian nodded. Beckoning for Atton to follow him out of the cargo hold, he said, "My remote has maps and seismic readings of the planet. If Kreia is surviving down there, it means she's underground. Come on."

As the two men exited the cargo hold, apparently destined for the garage, Mira pulled Brianna up to her feet, put a hand on the younger woman's shoulder, and steered out of the room. Visas trailed along in their wake.

"He's just being male," said the huntress to Brianna as they entered the main hold. "He's just being a stubborn, stupid guy. Atton does this all of the time. Now sit down." The Echani obeyed. Visas perched herself upon another bench across the room. "What did he tell you about his discussion with Admiral Onasi?"

Brianna felt numb. "He just mentioned… when he came back, you know… he just mentioned that he had spoken to the admiral and that the admiral had told him that… that Revan was out in Unknown Space."

"Uh huh," muttered Mira in reply. She settled herself upon the bench next to Brianna and, glancing at the cockpit, added, "And what do you think about all of that, other than that it kind of threw a monkey wrench into your relationship?"

"It's not a relationship, Mira," protested Brianna, very conscious of Visas's presence. "He kissed me once. Twice. Maybe it was a couple of times but the way his face changed when he mentioned Revan's name… he was happy to hear of her but it was painful to speak of her. Painful to him and also to me."

"It doesn't surprise me that it was painful," responded Mira wryly, "but are you sure that you got the whole story?"

"The whole story?" she repeated doubtfully.

"Yeah, the _entire_ story, right down to the part about Admiral Onasi and 'Sarinae Cora.'" Mira sighed again. "You weren't there, Brianna, but I was. And I think –and Atton, who was also there, agrees with me –that it was pretty apparent that Onasi had, um, feelings for the reformed Revan. Feelings that she returned. And, though Karis was hurt to hear it, he wasn't distraught or anything."

"He isn't… over her."

"If that's the problem… Look, Brianna, there are people that I'm still not over, people that," Mira took a deep breath, "went and left me, you know. But I'm not about to let that stop me from being happy with anyone else and I don't think that Karis is the kind of guy who would."

"He loves you," remarked Visas abruptly. Brianna turned to stare at the Miraluka. "I've known for quite some time now and I believe that Kreia did as well. When he does battle and you are not there, you are still always there, in him." She got to her feet and began to cross the room to the hallway. "You should know that."

Mira and Brianna watched the Miraluka Jedi go and tightness welled up in the Echani's throat. Perhaps only to break the silence, Mira coughed slightly and said, "So, yeah. In my opinion, Revan –or rather, 'Sarinae' –isn't much competition, even if it takes Karis some time to figure that out."

"I just have such doubts," whispered Brianna. "I always have such doubts, about Kreia, about Zeke, about how he feels for me, and always, always about myself. I worry so much and there is so much to worry about. The fear that Revan's return could be the catalyst to break him away from me is only one of a very long list."

"Then have some faith," she advised as she got to her feet. "We've all got doubts, Briana; all of us are terrified of the rug being pulled out from under us. When you're in a relationship –with any one –you almost always second guess and have doubts. When you don't have any reasons to doubt anymore, then it starts getting good but it takes some time and some work, you understand?"

Brianna shrugged. "Like anything else in life."

"Exactly." Mira looked impressed at how quickly Brianna was catching on.

There was the sound of steps coming down the hallway and the two women glanced to the left in time to observe Atton's entrance into the main hold. "Bao-Dur and I found a small depression that looks too steep to have been naturally eroded," said the pilot with grim satisfaction. "I'm gonna bring the ship down to the most open ground we've got available and it still might not be enough."

"It's now or never," said Mira, crossing to his side.

"Look," said Atton softly, turning to face her. "If anything happens, whether it's now or later, down on the planet, I just want you to know–"

Mira stood on her toes to place a kiss lightly on his mouth. "Save it for the celebration," she whispered. "It's not now or never, not for us, not if I can help it. I'll see you on the other side."

"That's…uh," Atton stood still for a moment, searching for something to say. "That's an awfully strange way to say goodbye."

"Is it?" Mira smirked. "I've heard that lovers all over the galaxy say goodbye in just the same manner." She exited the hold, leaving Atton transfixed in her wake.

Smiling, Brianna tried to slip back out of the room the way she had come in but then she heard him say: "Brianna."

It was such a stiff sound being wrenched from his throat that she stopped and turned to look at him. "Yes, Atton?"

He wasn't looking at her. "I've got to know." He paused. "I wouldn't ask but…" He stopped again. "She's like a cat, Brianna: sometimes I wonder if she needs anybody at all."

"What is it, Atton?"

"Does she love me?"

She was stunned speechless for a moment and took her time to study the back of his head. His shoulders were bowed and she knew that, even without seeing his face, he had put up a false front, that underneath all of that sarcasm and resentment, Atton Rand was insecure and hesitant. Just like she was.

"You shouldn't doubt her, Atton."

"Just call me Thomas," he snorted but then stopped. "You have to tell me the truth."

Slowly, gently, Brianna replied, "I think so." She paused. "Does Zeke love me?"

He heaved a great sigh of relief, then another of exasperation, both in tandem with her comments. "How many times do we have you tell you something before you believe it?"

"I don't know. Do you believe that Mira loves you just because I told you that she does?"

"You said that you think she does," he defended himself before grudgingly admitting: "You seem like a trustworthy person."

"And you're expecting me to lie to Zeke?"

Atton turned and met her gaze. "Don't you think that you'd ask me to lie to Mira if all of our places were swapped? Don't you think that I would, if it were to protect her? He can't do this alone and you know that. We all know that. I'm not about to let him give up his life by going out there alone in order to protect his pride."

"I know that," she replied curtly, "and I'm not about to let him do that either. I said I was with you; I just don't like lying to him. Do you enjoy lying to Mira?"

He quickly shook his head and then turned away again. "You should get into your crash webbing," he told her quietly. "You all should. I'm about to bring her down and readings show that the storms are kicking up again. Guess that Kreia's preparing a welcoming committee for us all."

With a nod, Brianna replied, "I'll go and tell everyone now."

"Look," he dragged the word out. "Why are you looking to me to tell you what's right here? I can't do that for you, Brianna. I can't do that for anyone except myself. It's only that, sometimes, lies are safer than the truth."

"Be sure to keep telling yourself that," she replied before she could stop herself and instantly regretted it as he flinched.

"I don't know what's right here," Atton repeated, steadily meeting her eyes again. "I'm telling you what has ended up working for me. I told someone what I'd been those first few years after I deserted, I wouldn't be here right now. So, cutting the crap here, you've got to take a stand on what you think needs to be done here. If you want to run off and blab all of this to Karis, that's your business. He's not going to stop us. But you really need to evaluate your priorities and figure out what's going to keep him alive in this particular situation."

He left in the direction of the cockpit, leaving Brianna to ponder what he had said to her and then to realize that, in the last months, she had completely forgotten how to negotiate the buckles on the crash webbing.

.:Trayus Core Outskirts:.

The lack of enemies present throughout the structure gave Brianna pause enough to mention it to Mira but the huntress had merely shrugged at the observation. Now, observing Kreia alone at the heart of the dark academy, bathed in red light, Brianna's misgivings intensified.

"I say we go with my original plan and shoot a rocket at her and be done with it," hissed Mira from behind her pillar where she crouched beside Atton.

"Too easy," muttered the pilot, fingering the ribs on his lightsaber. "Way too easy."

"She won't know what hit her!"

"Don't you want her to know what hit her or rather who hit her?"

"This is no time for pride," interrupted Visas from where she stood next to Brianna. "We must act and then you may boast of your actions later, Atton."

"She's too clever for a rocket to work," mused Bao-Dur.

"I say we confront her," Mira then argued.

"She must have a trap ready for us!" said Brianna urgently. "She would not leave herself undefended like this otherwise."

"I don't care," replied Atton. "I say we take her by surprise and toss her corpse over the edge into this pit."

"There's no possibility that she is unaware of our presence here," said Visas. "Let us do this now before she has a chance to call for her followers."

Atton nodded, touched Mira's shoulder, and slid out from behind the pillar. Bao-Dur, Brianna, and Visas followed. The Echani was doubtful of this enterprise but she could not allow them to go on without her. The five companions sidles up to the bridge and quietly made their way across. Brianna was the last in their silent line and constantly glanced over her shoulder; whether she was looking for Zeke or for some other, silent, unknown enemy she could not tell. Half-way across, she stopped and doubted her reasons for following.

Why was she doing this? She knew that there was little chance of survival; Kreia was far too powerful than five fledgling Jedi who were in truth little more than padawans. Why was she giving herself up for sacrifice? Was she, in some misguided attempt, trying to swap places with Zeke now since she could not have done so before in that ruined garden? Was she trying to die for him, prove to the Exile that her love was greater than any affection Maria Starlight might have possessed for him at one time, affection that he believed somehow might have carried over into a new life?

What was Brianna trying to do anyway? Was she trying to die for him? If she would die for him, why was she stopping in the middle of a bridge now? Did that mean that her love did not run deep enough, that she could have such misgivings at such a crucial time? What did she feel for Zeke anyway? She called it love but what was love to her, to him as he had said in a crumbling sham of a council chamber once? And why did these doubts manifest themselves only now?

Suddenly, she glanced to Atton. The pilot had stopped too in the middle of the bridge and had turned to gaze at Mira in the most peculiar way, brown eyes seeming to dart to her face, to her wrists, to her neck. Mira had taken several steps back in response. Bao-Dur was staring at his robotic arm, his face contorted in bitter anger. Visas was silent and made no movement save to gently touch her veiled face. Confused, Brianna glanced to Kreia and saw that the old woman had turned to watch them and there was a slight smirk upon her lips.

She saw Atton reach for one of the knives in his belt, still looking at Mira, and that was when Brianna took action and found her voice. "No!" she cried out at them all and all four turned to stare at her as though she had shaken them out of a dream. "She's feeding on our minds and doubts, preying upon our weaknesses," she hissed.

Bao-Dur seemed awakened. "Put that knife down, Atton," he said. "You don't want to do that."

The pilot looked to Kreia with a face full of unmasked hatred. "Bitch," he muttered and sprinted across the remainder of the bridge, gold lightsaber in hand. The others followed in quick pursuit. Brianna ran between two pillars and into the red circle only to watch Kreia lift a struggling Atton into the air and toss him into the pillar beside the Echani with a thud.

"Atton!" Brianna heard Mira shout but the huntress remained where she was, green lightsaber in hand.

The pilot struggled to his feet. "I'm good!" he shouted back then fixed his brown eyes on Kreia. "Just need to teach this schutta a lesson already."

"You always were a fool," said Kreia with a sneer. "You along with a huntress, the blinded one, a servile handmaiden, and an alien, all of you: fools. Do you seek to come here and challenge me?"

"I am no servant to Atris anymore!" snapped Brianna. "You know that."

"You're always a servant to someone, aren't you little handmaiden? If it is not Atris now, then it is the Exile today. Who will it be tomorrow? When he is dead, there will be no tomorrow, not for you. Whom will you serve then?"

"It will not be you if that is what you mean to ask. And he will live tomorrow; I will see to that!"

"You alone?"

"Nobody's standing alone here, Kreia," Mira moved to Brianna's side. "No one except for you."

She scoffed. "None of you have the strength to stand alone. You use each other as a crutch even as you use the Force as a crutch; use the Exile as a crutch. Do you seek to come here and challenge me? You will not find a willing combatant."

"Well then," said Atton with false bravado, recovering, "lay down your lightsaber and come quietly. We'll be all done."

"All done?" repeated Kreia with scorn. "Do you know the meaning of the phrase, fool? Who are you, any of you, to know when something, some course, has finished, when something is 'done'? Ruin takes time to complete, little Jedi, and your feeble actions cannot set back a ruin that has been in the making for generations beyond count." Visas flinched and Kreia saw it. "You know this, blinded one. You have deluded them and you know it or have you deluded yourself? Did you trust your feeble excuse for eyes? Do any of you trust what you see?"

"Alright, that's enough," replied Bao-Dur with determination.

"Yeah," agreed Atton, "that's enough. If you're not about to 'come quietly,' we're just going to have to toss your corpse over the edge here."

"Did you come here with the illusion that you were not determined to do so from the beginning?" said Kreia in a quiet voice that still rang through to empty corners. "Do you still cower beneath the mantle of the Jedi you can never be, fool?"

"That's not for you to decide!" snapped Mira. "You aren't anyone's master: not ours and not the Exile's!"

"Yet you are still schooled by me, even now," said Kreia. "You are bested by me as children may always be bested by a parent. You –none of you –ever really had the will to do me in and now you cower in the shadows of Trayus as all Jedi do whether they know it or not."

Brianna's gaze darted to the corners of the massive chamber, alerted to the presence of several masked figures collecting at the various doorways: Sith assassins amassed by Kreia's order. She looked to Mira and saw that the huntress had followed her gaze as had Bao-Dur.

"Did you really think that you could catch me unaware?" asked Kreia of them in a voice so soft, it was dangerous. "Did you really think that I would not be ready for you? Did you truly believe that all of you together could even challenge my power?"

Blinding light crackled at the old woman's palms. Out of the corner of her eye, Brianna thought she saw Atton cast one glance at Mira and then slowly back away into the shadow of the pillars, the final thing she saw before the crackling light enveloped them all. She stumbled backwards and then, dimly recognizing that the edge of the massive platform must be close by, let herself collapse forward onto her hands and knees. Fatigue overcame every facet of her being and she closed her eyes and felt the cool smooth surface of the floor against her cheek. Wallowing in darkness, she thought she could hear Mira's shallow breathing beside her and the last lines of a conversation echoing toward her ear from what seemed a great distance:

"Lock them away. Unharmed. We will test the measure of his devotion in this fashion."

"What of the one who has escaped?" The voice was raspy, familiar, and full of pain.

"He is a fool and predictable in his behavior. He is easy prey now; for all that he may have been a hunter before."

Brianna let herself sink deeper into the darkness. Idly, she remembered the occasion not long ago, not long ago at all, where she had drowned in darkness and he had come for her. What of this time? He had said he would come back to her. How many times would his promise, a promise given in a tone that was as light as a caress and seemed as lightly given, hold?

.:Trayus Academy, Holding Cells:.

Her hands were washed in red like blood and, carelessly, she wondered how one could measure innocence. If she washed her hands free of this place could she free herself from perpetual darkness?

The wounds on her hands –scrapes and cuts, nothing major, she assessed –were slowly scabbing, dark patches in the hazy crimson glow, casualties of a minor battle with the rusty bars of her cage-like cell. When she had first come back to consciousness, she knew that beating the metal with her fists would do nothing at all but how Brianna, hated, hated, hated, hated to be locked up, caged like an animal by hands she could not have seen while in the vulnerable state of nothingness that Kreia had unleashed upon all of the conspiring companions of the Exile's crew.

Brianna sat upon the stained floor with her head tipped back against the back wall of the cage and let her blue-gray eyes half-close and allowed her mind to settle into haziness akin to her surroundings. If she blurred her vision with a sweep of her eyelashes, the bars did not seem so threateningly tangible and she could forget, if only for a moment.

She hated imprisonment; the word bespoke a deep loathing in the Echani's mind that nearly overwhelmed all her other thoughts. "Now you know what it feels like to be locked up," the Atton of old might have told her with a sardonic and bitter grin if he had been present. But Atton, of old or of present, was not there. In some strange twist of irony, of all the companions Kreia had had her minions lock up, Atton had escaped imprisonment.

"How did he get away?" she heard Mira softly say aloud as though she had been following Brianna's thoughts all along. "How did he escape the flash? It… sapped the rest of us."

She heard a shuffling and a quiet groan in the cell to her left as Bao-Dur shifted his weight. "Sapped is right?" he croaked from between chapped lips. "All of the power is drained from my arm; otherwise we might be out of here. But why didn't she kill us outright?"

"Why do we ask?" asked Mira grimly. "I'm just glad she didn't."

"She must have plans," murmured Visas.

"Plans for us or for the general?" Bao-Dur shook his head. "Force, I'm not sure I want to know."

"Do you have any sense of him?" Mira said quietly to Brianna.

She shook her head. "None," Brianna replied dejectedly. "I usually do. Have you any sense of… anyone?"

"I'm not sure that I'm glad he got away," she said by way of answering. "Obviously we're not dead and the guard's outside so he wouldn't be dead if he'd gotten caught with the rest of us. But now I don't have any idea of where he is or if he's alive. Do you think that some random Sith will think he's valuable if Atton stumbles along? Or would the bastard just off him and be done with it? I mean, it's good I guess that there's someone to warn Zeke but that all depends if the messenger gets that far."

"Or if the messenger even decides to go and warn Zeke," interjected Brianna.

"Exactly. How did he get away anyway? That's what I want to know."

Bao-Dur shrugged. "Maybe Atton's just sneaky like that," he suggested.

Mira didn't crack a smile. Brianna drew her knees up to her chest, clasped her hands with their newly ruined fingernails, and didn't wince at the pain that shot up through her arms. "Maybe the general will burst in here and rescue us at any moment," she heard Bao-Dur say to Mira.

_If anyone's going to rescue me, I'd rather it were myself,_ Brianna thought, taking herself by surprise. Didn't she want Zeke to come and rescue her? But what if rescuing her put his own life at risk? Would she rather wither away in this cage? And what of the others? In order to rescue the others, he had to rescue her too and put himself in danger anyway. Did she want that? Did she even have the right to say that, because she wanted him not to risk his life by rescuing her, he could not come and save Mira, Bao-Dur, or Visas? And what if he wanted to risk his life for her? She could not have that and yet how dearly she wanted to be free of this cage!

As Brianna's thoughts led her to circular conclusions, she felt herself begin to doze off again, entering a state of slightly submerged awareness, half listening to Mira and Bao-Dur's ensuing conversations. It seemed a short time before there was the sounds of a scuffling outside the prison and Mira got up to her feet and looked anxiously at the closed door. Brianna blinked and slowly staggered to her feet, ready for something if not anything. The door slid open and their guard stumbled backward, an orange blade appearing in the middle of his back. The blade disappeared and the guard fell forward onto the Exile's shoulder.

Zeke shoved the body to his left and as the Exile shut off his lightsaber, Brianna took the time to examine him for any injury, her gaze washing over him as he dropped to his knees and cut open the lock on her cell. The door swung open and she fell into his open arms willingly, pressing her cheek against his chest, relieved that he was alright.

He held her close for a moment and then gently pulled her to her feet and let go, moving to work on Bao-Dur's lock. Brianna grasped the open door of her cage, watching as the lock sprung open and the Exile turned to Mira, saying, "What were you all thinking?"

She narrowed her eyes. "Where's Atton?"

"He's not with you?"

"He got away," said Visas as Zeke moved on to free her.

"Got away?"

"From Kreia," clarified Bao-Dur, stumbling forward. Brianna held out a hand to support the Iridonian and Bao-Dur gratefully accepted.

"I haven't seen him." The Exile shook his head as Mira kicked her cell door open.

"I'm gonna kill him," the huntress muttered.

Brianna winced. "I heard Kreia send Sion to find him."

"Fine," Mira bit her lip and then sported a feral grin. "I'll kill Sion first."

"No, you won't," said Zeke with quiet command. "None of you are going any further into this. You all are going to go back to the ship and you are going to go now."

"Can't you see that we want to fight with you?" Brianna stepped towards him, pulling Bao-Dur along with her. "Can't you see that you don't have to stand alone?"

"Brianna…"

"We're coming with you, Zeke, whether you want us to or not."

Zeke's eyes met hers. "Someone has to fly the ship, Brianna," he said slowly, "or none of us are going to make it. Atton's… gone so that means you."

Brianna paused in formulating her rebuttal, feeling the weight of having all eyes upon her. He was right; could he ever be wrong? She looked to Mira. "We have to go," she told her friend. "He's right. And look at Bao-Dur; we have to get him back."

Slowly, the huntress nodded and reached out to take Bao-Dur from Brianna. "Let's go."

Visas and Mira moved forward, out of the prison, supporting Bao-Dur between them and Brianna looked to Zeke again. Her eyes traced a long cut across the left side of his face. "You have to come back to me," she told him. "If it's you or Kreia in there, if it's you or Atton, it better be you or I will never, ever forgive you."

His hand reached out to cup her cheek. "Does it always have to be me?"

She pressed her lips together and Zeke, recognizing the familiar signs of Brianna's tenacity in an argument, leaned forward and pressed his lips against hers. "Yes," she said when he had pulled away, inches between them.

He laughed softly and let her go. "You need to get out of here."

"You go first."

Laughing again, Zeke moved to the doorway. "Brianna," he paused. She looked to him and watched his face, bathed in red light. "It's always going to be you," he said and then he was gone.

.:The _Ebon Hawk_, cockpit:.

She heard Mira's voice before the huntress came running into the cockpit: "He sent the signal!" the huntress came pounding down the hallway. "He sent the signal," she said, leaning against the navigator's chair. "He's sent the signal and, Brianna, he's got him."

Brianna's eyes remained steady on the controls. "Is Bao-Dur alright in the med bay?" she asked, struggling to keep her tone calm as she carefully negotiated the _Hawk _through the dark gorges of Malachor.

"Visas and I strapped him down," she confirmed, sinking into the chair beside Brianna. "How much further?"

"Difficult to say," she replied, reaching up to flick the switch to open the vents on the ship. "But not much. You and Visas need to be ready to help them up the ramp."

"Roger that," said Mira grimly. "How long?"

"Locking onto their signal… get T3 up here!"

The droid came wheeling forward, issuing a series of trills. Brianna barely glanced down. "Yes, I am aware of the heat surge," she said. "Can you work on that panel? Try and lock on."

As T3-M4 commenced his work, Brianna glanced back to see Mira frozen, staring out onto the surroundings. "Mira, go!" the Echani ordered and she obeyed. Brianna tucked her braids behind her ears, heard T3's successful beep, and held her breath as the huge red platform came into proximity. She pulled up, hugging the perimeter, and listened for the hiss of the landing ramp opening, resisting the urge to look over her shoulder for the Exile.

The landing ramp hissed shut and Brianna took off, employing the repulsor pads to push the _Hawk _up into the sky. Zeke came running down the corridor but she barely glanced behind her, so intent was Brianna on her task. "We need to go!" said the Exile, supporting himself on her chair. "Bao-Dur rigged the Mass Shadow Generator to blow."

"The what?" asked Brianna, negotiating through the debris field. "What's he done?"

"Set the Generator to explode. We need to get clear of the atmosphere or we're fried."

She pinched the tip of her tongue between her teeth. "Got it."

They zoomed through the stratosphere, then the mesosphere. Zeke glanced at a monitor. "Altitude's soaring," he said with approval.

"We're overheating," she informed him through clenched teeth.

"Not a problem." Only then did she look to him. He gave her a crooked smile. "Space is plenty cold."

She shook her head and pressed down hard on the thrusters. They felt the subtle shock of weightlessness and it seemed that only then did Brianna finally breathe again. Zeke jumped into the navigator's chair and pulled up a table of readings. "We need to hit lightspeed."

"But I thought you said that once we were clear of the–"

"The force of an entire planet exploding, Brianna, might just be enough to blow us off of the hyperspace route we need." If his tone turned condescending, she didn't seem to care. He swore. "Hyperdrive's offline."

"Can we fix it?" she demanded an answer.

"Sure, Bao-Dur or Atton could but they're currently pretty banged up," he pushed himself out of the chair. "I'll do what I can."

"Hurry!"

"You don't have to tell me twice."

He disappeared down the corridor and Brianna watched Malachor. Something seemed to be bubbling under the planet's surface. "Zeke," she called out. He didn't respond. "Zeke!" she said with growing urgency.

"I'm working on it!"

She saw something like an eruption and then another. "Zeke!" she yelled and watched as the monitors for hyperspace flickered back to life. The galaxy map flashed up in front of her. "Where are we going?"

"Anywhere that isn't here!" The voice was Atton's.

She punched in the coordinates of the first planet that came to her eye, glanced up at the display, and, transfixed, watched Malachor bubble and erupt. Atton lurched into the cockpit, what looked like the remainder of his left arm clutched to his side, and hit the correct buttons with his right. There was a flash of light and a great lurch forward and Malachor blew up and Brianna hit her head against the back of her chair and fell into darkness again.

…

On all of the occasions on which Brianna had gone to Citadel Station on Atris's business, she had never once entered the cantina on Entertainment Module 081. A great deal tamer than those she remembered on Nar Shaddaa, the bar was quiet and low lighted, for which Brianna was grateful. She pulled her hood close around her face, conscientiousness bordering on insecurity as she thought of the large bandage that wrapped around the base of her skull. The medical droid the Republic had provided upon the _Ebon Hawk_'s impromptu arrival on Citadel Station had assured her of no serious damage but she still was cautious to a fault of her injury.

She should be grateful, she supposed, that it was no more than it was. Bao-Dur had walked away from Malachor with serious trauma that manifested itself as minor paranoia in addition to the loss of functionality of his mechanical arm. Zeke and Mira had been lucky, walking away with no more than a few scrapes and bruises. The cut that ran perpendicular to Zeke's cheekbone would become a scar, so the doctor said, but the Exile had gritted his teeth and said he'd had worse. But Atton… Atton was the reason for which Brianna should be counting her blessings.

Their pilot had walked away with the loss of his left arm up to halfway above the elbow, its loss a souvenir of a deadly duel with Darth Sion. Atton swore up and down that he was alright with it, that he was grateful that he had gotten away with his life, but Brianna had seen him touch the neatly healed stump with heavy eyes while he awaited a new mechanical appendage to replace the one he had lost.

Besides, it had been nearly two weeks since the return, time enough for Brianna's head to nearly heal, Atton's arm to arrive, and Bao-Dur's doctor to begin admitting visitors. Time enough for Brianna to make some decisions she hoped she would not regret.

She met Zeke's eyes from across the heads of the seated cantina patrons. He sat at the bar with his feet propped up on the seat beside him. Brianna smiled nervously from where she sat at the table in the corner, responding to a raise of his eyebrows with a shrug.

His voice entered her mind: _Are you sure you want to do this?_

She responded in kind. _What should the test be?_

A patron called out for a waiter; Brianna could almost hear Zeke thinking, considering. Finally, he replied, _Will you regret it in six months if you don't?_

She considered. _How about in six years?_

_Well then, _he smiled at her.

She was about to ask what he meant by that when a young woman in a tan tunic and pants a little older than Brianna entered the cantina; she watched the not-so stranger as she wove her way between Pazaak tables and players. The woman paused near Brianna's table so the Echani mustered her courage and called out in a low voice, "Alianne."

The woman flinched at the sound of her name and turned to see her sister. "It's…" she began uncertainly. "It's… good to see you… Brianna."

Brianna smiled; the expression slightly trembling upon her pale features. "How are you?"

Sitting down abruptly, Alianne replied automatically, "Well. And you?"

"A little worse for wear," she said honestly, pushing back her hood slightly to reveal the bandage. She heard her sister gasp. "It's nothing, really."

"Are you going to tell me that a cut that needs stitches is 'but a scratch' as you did when we were children?" Alianne demanded but she smiled too. Brianna breathed a sigh of relief. "It's… well, it's much the same for us," the elder woman admitted. "How did you put it, 'A little worse for wear'? Yes, that suits our situation well."

Not seeking to pry and aware that going too fast would not suit her aims, Brianna replied, "Thank you for taking the time to see me."

"Thank you for asking me. For a moment… a long time actually, I had thought you would never want to see us again."

"Is that how some of the others are feeling?"

Tactfully, Alianne replied, "Well, not all of them. Clytemnestra's the worse; you know how she is, how she's always been, but some of the others…. I told Serena I was coming to meet you."

"And?"

"She seemed quite… unmoved."

"I suppose that some things always stay the same," said Brianna wryly, provoking a laugh from her sister.

"Yes, I suppose," giggled Alianne softly but quickly calmed herself. "I don't have much time," she admitted. "I'm expected at the Ithorian Compound."

"Then let us be quick. What are your plans for the future? Do you plan to stay with Atris?"

"I plan to make my own way," said Alianne bluntly. "I don't call her 'mistress' anymore. None of us do, save Adele. Atris seems to have accepted reality; she mentioned that she does not think she will be called mistress by anyone ever again."

"How is she?"

"Disillusioned," she decided after some thought. "Tired. Exhausted, rather. She had us throw her Sith holocrons into the ocean. She told us to let the sea have them."

"Did you?"

"No. I put them away where she could not find them. I want you to tell the Exile about them. He can choose; it isn't our decision to make."

"When will you decide that something is your decision to make?"

"When will you?"

Brianna fell silent. "I suppose," Alianne began hesitantly, "I suppose that you chose to follow the Exile. You're light-years ahead of us, sister, really." She said nothing in return. "I'm sorry."

"For what?" asked Brianna somewhat callously.

"Well, for everything I suppose." She seemed thoughtful. "And I think I speak not only on my behalf but also on that of our sisters."

"It is not you that should be apologizing, Alianne–"

"But I could have done better, couldn't I have?" said Alianne unflinchingly. "I could done something, I could have spoken to Father about Clytemnestra and Adele. I could have done something but I did nothing."

"Nor did Serena, or… or anyone else. Lyra joined in upon occasion–"

"But I could have done better by you, Brianna," she said, "and I am sorry that I did not."

For a moment, Brianna had nothing to say. Finally, she found her voice though it was a voice that began to crack. "I don't want an apology, Alianne," she said. "Not from you or… or anyone else. I want to stop feeling like a victim. I can say that I forgive you but the truth is that I forgave you a long time ago. I never wanted to go looking for apologies."

"Then why did you ask me to come here?"

"Because I want a sister, Alianne. I have… I don't have many friends but those that I have are tried and true and I would that my sister was counted among them. I don't want an apology; I want my sister."

Alianne took a moment to answer during which Brianna felt as though she was holding her breath. "I can be your sister," she finally said with a trembling smile. "I'll be your sister, Brianna. Or at least I'll try to be. I… I don't know about the others but I can try."

Brianna closed her eyes and then opened them. "Thank you, Alianne. I… I think you have to go now?"

"Moza is waiting," she confirmed after checking the time. "I'll see you soon?"

"I'm not going anywhere," replied Brianna, gently touching the back of her head with a smile.

Alianne nodded and left but Brianna was far from dissuaded by her sister's abrupt exit. She suspected that doing as much as Alianne had done in those last few minutes had been far beyond her sister's comfort zone. Rising from her seat, she looked to Zeke whom, she observed with amusement, was putting up a very good impression of someone who had not been listening in at all.

She crossed the room and sat down beside the Exile at the bar. "How did it go?" he asked her, handing her a glass of water.

"As though you had not been eavesdropping at all!"

He chuckled; Brianna loved the sound. "Guilty as charged," he confirmed with a smile but an uneasiness seemed to creep up in his grin. He quickly set his glass down upon the counter. "It's good that you were able to meet with your sister."

"Yes," Brianna smiled for what felt like the first time in while though she knew otherwise. "Yes, it's good. It's for the best. I'll get to see her again."

"Have you thought about the others?"

"Yes; I think it's best to take these things one step at a time."

"Then maybe I shouldn't be doing this," Brianna thought he heard him say under his breath. Zeke cleared his throat. "It's been a month since we got back."

"Three weeks," she said.

"Yeah. And Atton's got his arm, and Bao-Dur is… better, and you're almost healed so…"

"So?" she prompted him.

Zeke met her eyes. "You need to hear this from me before you hear it from anywhere else," he said steadily. "I love you. I can't say that I was in love from the first moment I saw you but I know that I love you now. And now you know. Which is going to make what I have to say next even harder.

"I need to go after Revan, Brianna. No one else is going to; no one else can do it."

"Why can't anyone else do it?" she demanded abruptly.

"Because no one else alive knows her as well as I do," he leveled with her. "It's the truth, Brianna. Malak's dead, Vrook's dead, Zhar's dead, Kreia's dead, your mother is…"

"Gone."

"Yes." He looked at her a little strangely. "You knew that your mother trained Revan for a time?"

She nodded solemnly. "My father once spoke of it to another. Why must you do this? Why can't you just…"

"Leave her out there?" Brianna was silent. "It's not even that. She went out there for a reason. We –the Republic –need to find out what that reason is."

"Screw the Republic!" she flared up, drawing glances from around the cantina. In a much lower voice, she asked, "What have they done for you, Zeke? Why do you feel as though you owe them some great debt that you must do this for them?"

"It's not for the Republic per say; it's for the galaxy. Kreia told me that I need to bring stability to the galaxy; she told me that I have to find Revan."

"Kreia told you this? Kreia lies!"

He shook his head. "Not this time. I have to do this."

She saw that his resolve was strong and knew that Zeke was just about stubborn enough to do what he set himself out to do every time. "Then take me with you."

"There was another thing," his voice had that steady tone again that meant Brianna was about to hear bad news. "Admiral Onasi said that Revan had told him that she could not take anyone she loved with her. I think that holds true for me as well."

Struck speechless, Brianna stared at him for a moment. "No," she said simply.

"Brianna…"

"No. You can't do this alone and it won't be just me who tells you that. Why must you always do everything alone?"

"Brianna, you can't come with me."

"And why not?"

"I need you to stay here."

"Stay here? And do what?"

"I need you and Atton, Mira, Visas, and Bao-Dur to stay here and build up the Jedi Order."

She took a deep breath. "I can do that."

He smiled at her. "I'm glad. I want someone I trust here."

"I don't want you to go."

"I didn't think we'd break away clean."

"We're not breaking."

"No, we're not."

"You're coming back."

He hesitated. "Yes," he said. "I am."

"And I'll wait for you."

"I don't want you waiting."

"Why?"

Zeke got up out of his chair. "We'll talk about it on the ship," he said.

"No," she said. "Why don't you want me to wait for you?"

He sat back down and took both of her hands in his. "You put your interests before mine," he told her quietly, "every single time. You'd die for me."

"Of course I would–"

"But I don't want you dying for me."

"Why?"

"Don't you see that you dying for me is what I want least? But if you come with me or if I stay here, your attachment to me grows and grows until it possesses you? I don't want that. I don't want you to become a handmaiden once again."

"I won't. Please."

He hesitated. "I'll come back in a moment," he said.

"Yes."

She watched him leave in the direction of the refresher and then she fled.

…

She found a bench in a small corner of the residential pavilion. She perched herself upon the edge of the bench and resisted the urge to pull her knees up to her chest as she might have done as a child.

He was leaving. He was leaving and there was nothing she could do about it, not come with him nor convince him to stay. He was leaving her. Did that mean that he did not love her? Did he not love her enough to stay? That thought made her uncertain of everything.

She loved him; of that she was sure. But he had alluded that her loving him was not good for her. How could that be? He had likened her love for him to her loyalty to Atris by calling her handmaiden. Had she become a handmaiden again, only this time, a handmaiden to the Exile?

Was she not her own woman, liberated? Had she ever been or had she merely transferred her bondage to another? What did that mean? And if he was gone, to whom was she tied now? Was she free?

She had thought the Exile to be her freedom; she saw now that he was merely the catalyst. She could only be free once he was gone, or so he perceived. Was that true? If so, what did that mean? Had she never been free to begin with?

She had wanted freedom for so long that the word still tasted sweet upon her lips. Could she be free once he was gone; had he been right? And, if so, what a curious new thing for a handmaiden: freedom.


	12. Doorway

**A/N:** I couldn't leave this the way I did almost half a year ago. The ending of _Catalyst _was unfulfilling, to me more than anyone. And so here we are.

**Doorway **

_By Marianne Bennet_

The emptiness of space, pinpricked with twinkling stars, was mirrored on the insides of Zeke Karis's eyelids. It was hard to believe that he had only left Telos's atmosphere moments before; he already felt as though there were lightyears of distance between Citadel Station and the _Ebon Hawk_. It was harder still to recall he and Briana's parting of ways. No, that wasn't right either. It was easy to remember that afternoon, the way she had bitten down on her lower lip and said that she did not wish to wait for him. What was hard was thinking on how he had returned to a vacant table, an empty chair.

Maybe that was best for both of them: a clean break, a quick cutting of all ties. Maybe it would easier if she hated him. It wasn't easier for him to think of her hating him but it never was about what was easiest for the Jedi Exile. _I can't take anyone I love with me. _If that had been hard for Brianna to hear, it had been doubly hard on his ears. Had she not understood that? He tried to push down any resentment surfacing with that thought but it was difficult. But then he had never expected things to be any less than difficult.

Perhaps the full gravity of the fact that he was flying away from Telos with an empty ship had not hit him until this moment. He had not thought the hallways could be so quiet; he was avoiding the cargo hold altogether. It was easier to shut himself away in the cockpit and imagine that that small room was all there was to the galaxy. But the galaxy was his now. All of those stars, the planets that must revolve about them, they were all his. Zeke could go anywhere now, bound only the vaguest outlines of a mission whose objectives he was willing to procrastinate. He needed time to think, about Maria –Revan now, or was it Sarinae? –and about Brianna. He had all the time in the galaxy to think and yet he was already dreading every moment. It was too much like the beginning of his exile. He did not want to turn into a cipher of himself a second time over.

But he had to go somewhere. Only a fool would allow himself to drift the fringes of a planet's atmosphere. Zeke lifted his left hand from his chair's armrest, played his fingers across the controls and pulled up the galaxy map, and then stopped everything he was doing, had planned to do, because when he saw the reflection in the cockpit's large windows, his mind was immediately wiped blank by the sight.

"I feel as though I am always standing in a doorway," said Brianna abruptly, hovering just outside the cockpit's open entryway. "I'm not certain if that is a good thing or not."

"That depends," replied Zeke when he found his voice again.

"On what?" Her blue-gray eyes did not leave the back of his chair; he did not need the Force's aid to sense her fear and her hope.

"On what kind of doorway it is, I suppose." Still, he did not turn around. He shrugged. "There are all kinds."

"Yours?" It wasn't a question so much as it was a plea. Zeke did not say anything. He felt her apprehension as she shifted her weight from foot to foot. "I suppose you want to know what I am doing here," she said, wringing her hands. "I stowed away in the cargo hold. Again." He smiled even though he knew she could not see it. "I've made a habit of it now, I suppose." And then everything seemed to drop away from her all at once and she was laid bare. "Please don't send me back."

"I told you that I couldn't bring anyone with me," he replied, getting to his feet and turning to face her. Seeing him again gave her pause; she hesitated.

"Yes," she acknowledged this truth shortly. "But you don't get to tell me what to do, Zeke. I won't stay behind because you tell me to. If I don't stow away on his ship, I will buy one of my own and follow. Handmaidens are the ones that get left behind to wait. I am not a handmaiden anymore. If I wish to follow you, then I will and you will not stop me."

He did not respond to this; that only made her more frustrated. She took two angry steps forward, crossing the room's threshold. "I have been a fool and I have been frightened and I have been blind. I spent most of the last year running away from you when you would have had me in a moment. I have finally stopped running away and I won't let you run away from me now."

"I'm coming back," Zeke insisted. "I may be leaving now but I will come back."

Her smile was full of sorrow. "You can't know that," she told him gently. "No one can know that. No one can say what will happen in a year, in ten years, or even in a week, to either of us. What if you come back and I am not there? What will happen then?"

He had no words for that; neither did Brianna in truth. Casting her gaze down to her feet, she said, "I have nothing to say other than what I have already said. But do you remember what I told you on Dantooine?" She dragged her eyes back up to meet his. "I have been able to think of nothing else since I left that cantina: 'I want to stand beside you, for all of your days.' Please. If you are going into the darkness, you cannot go into the darkness alone."

She saw him hesitate and smiled to herself at the sight of it. Zeke had never been a man to move without thinking about it first. And she watched him think about it, her eyes never leaving his face. And then, finally, with a sad smile tugging at the corners of his mouth, Zeke said: "Who am I to turn you away?"

Brianna sighed with relief, smiling at him weakly, and then, ever practical, walked past him to the still open galaxy map. "Alright," she said, her smile growing wider, "where are we going?"

"Doesn't matter," he replied, now grinning as he looked over her shoulder at the map. Slowly, he wrapped his arms around Brianna and pulled her close to him. "You're here with me and that's enough."

"No," she said softly, closing her eyes as he planted a kiss against the line of her jaw. "_You're_ with _me_."

And with eyes closed, content with each other's touch and presence, they braced themselves for the future. Whatever destiny had in store for them, Zeke and Brianna would face it together, both finally free.

The End. For real this time.


End file.
